Through The Eyes Of A Mermaid
by Anonymous Bella
Summary: "For the nth time Zale, he hasn't done anything. Why are you so worried about him being near me?" I answer back. "Why aren't you?" He retorts. [Cato/OC]
1. Chapter 1

_Hello to everyone reading! This is my very first attempt ever to write a fanfiction, so please do be nice to me! :)_

 _This story will take place on the 73rd annual Hunger Games, right before Katniss and Peeta become Tributes. I will be changing a lot of stuff, such as Cato and most of the Tributes from the 74th games we all know will instead be on the 73rd, along with some other events in the games from the original story. I still do hope you will like my version!_

 _I will update this as soon as I am able to complete the next chapter. Please let me know what you think! x_

 _*I do not own The Hunger Games and any of the characters included in it, except for my OC's_

* * *

 **Chapter 1**

* * *

The sun begins to rise as its rays of light slowly touch the pristine waters of the ocean, little by little turning the reflection of the sea a hint of that beautiful orange hue just as the whelming darkness of the night yields before the surreal dawning saffron of the morning. Twilight. A spectacular sight to experience especially from District 4 where you only get to witness the sun and sky meet the sea. The citizens of this district are quite accustomed to this phenomenon, yet they still do not take for granted the alluring sight and the unexplainably calming effect it gives; Especially during this time of the year where children and adults alike dread the most.

Standing by the shoreline, I stare at the horizon as I watch the sun rise up into the sky completely. Strands of my long wavy hair keep on lightly touching my face due to the direction of the wind, yet I am too engrossed in my own thoughts to even bother pushing them away from my face. I continue to stare intently at the sea, calmly observing the point where the skyline meets the water. I wonder if we could get any farther away from that point? Can we reach far enough to find a place not under the reign of the Capitol? Will we even be able to survive the journey if we try?

"Cordelia!" Someone calls out to me the moment I start to get lost deeper inside my thoughts. I immediately break out from my trance state and before I am even able to turn around and address the person calling, I feel a large and very wet fishing net being dropped on top of my head, trapping my whole body underneath.

"Damn it, Zale! How many times do I have to tell you not to dump nets on my head _especially_ the ones we have just used recently?" I yell at the boy behind me, annoyance clearly evident in my voice as I try to take off the net which is now covering me from head to toe, dripping wet with seawater. We just got back from our early morning catch; We have quite a bountiful harvest which is something I should normally be happy about, yet I cannot bring myself to be in a good mood.

"Aw, come on Cordi! There's no need to be so grumpy about it. It's not like it could ruin your already _fantastic_ mood today." Zale responds with sarcasm while giving me a playful smirk, clearly not intimidated by the dangerous stare I am currently giving him. He crosses his arms to his broad chest while admiring his 'handiwork' as I continue to struggle getting the net off me. I sigh and turn around to face him entirely, struggling under as I do so.

 _There is a need to be grumpy, especially today._ I thought as I continue to untangle myself.

The net is large enough to carry half a dozen grown men in it. It is already heavy enough as it is and having it wet makes it even heavier. A bunch of seaweed have been caught in it, which makes several of them stick into my hair and face. I shoot him an annoyed look while his smirk transforms into a warm smile and looks at me with understanding. He then lets out a soft chuckle and finally starts to help me.

Zale and I have known each other ever since we were kids. He is the same age as mine and our families are pretty tight-knit. For some reason, he knows me very well; Sometimes even past the usual stoic facade I tend to put up in front of people. Most of the time, I find it quite annoying whenever he seems to successfully guess what's on my mind. Occasionally however, I am thankful that he does. Especially during moments like today where I do not want to voice out my thoughts.

Today is the annual Reaping Day for the Hunger Games, which is mainly the reason for my evidently dark mood. Being considered as a Career district, we are trained to fight and prepare for the games at a young age. It is not usual for us however to volunteer for the purpose of 'honor and glory' unlike the people from Districts 1 and 2. Like how most children from any of the other districts feel, being chosen as a tribute would without a doubt be a living nightmare. How someone volunteers to kill or be killed just to possibly earn the chance to be bathed in glory and riches, I will never understand. Thinking about it makes my mood darker than it already is.

I hate the games. I hate the Capitol.

"We better get these fish to the market before our clients complain about us being late again." Zale says while taking out the last piece of seaweed stuck in my hair. He is taller than me by several inches with an athletically built body which is most probably a result from our trainings at the Academy and the hard labor from working at the docks as well as fishing at sea. We have the same bronze skin tone and wavy locks that I assume is probably a common trait here at 4 due to our exposure to the sun and salty waters. His hair is a deep shade of chestnut brown and his eyes have that familiar sea green color just like most people from our district.

I raise an eyebrow at him. "Who do you think is at fault for making us late?" I ask.

"You are, of course!" He exclaims while starting to load the back of the mini truck with containers filled with fish we caught before the break of dawn.

"And how is it _my_ fault?" I say, frowning at him while picking up one side of the net and attempting to fold it properly. "You're the one who threw this stupid net all over me."

He chuckles once again. "Well, if you haven't been staring out into the sea for the past several minutes like an idiot, I wouldn't have needed to give you a distraction. You won't be able to reach farther than the horizon you know." He says and then winks at me. Seriously, does this person have some kind of mind reading ability or something?

"Whatever." I say while rolling my eyes. I then turn back towards the dock, half stomping my feet as I drag the net along. I get to the medium sized fishing boat we use, store it safely inside the compartment and head back to the truck.

Zale has finished loading all the containers of fish by the time I got back. I walk up to the front of the truck and find him waiting for me, already sitting on the driver's seat while his left elbow is resting by the window. He gives me a smirk as soon as I climb into the passenger seat and I smile slightly in return.

"Let's get this over with." He says. I immediately understand what he meant and it most definitely has nothing to do with the fish we caught.

I turn to face ahead and nod slightly. "Happy Hunger Games." I say in a voice mocking the tone that people from the Capitol make.

"And may the odds be _ever_ in your favor!" Zale answers back with that same annoying tone. It was my turn to smirk this time. He proceeds to start the engine and we both fasten our seat belts as we begin to head off towards the town proper. I look out the window to watch the glimmering sea disappear behind trees and houses as I start to get lost once again in my own thoughts.

District 4, being the only district located by the ocean, has its very own unique sense of beauty. Often overlooked, our district plays a very essential role to the Capitol, bringing Panem the bounty of the sea. Fishing is our major industry, and children are trained at a very young age for jobs entailing it which explains why us citizens are very adept with nets and tridents. The fishermen usually take their children with them often out to sea as a method of training to prepare them for when they are old enough to start working.

My father used to take me and my older brother Caspian with him when we were little. Along with Zale and his father, all of us would often set sail and observe the adults as they attempt to make their catch using large rope-like nets handwoven by our district's fellow citizens.

I was 11 when my father died at sea. I remember the night it happened. My mom was arguing with my dad to stay home during that one stormy evening but he didn't want to pass up a good opportunity. Apparently, there's a higher chance you will be able to catch more fish during the rain. Not heeding my mother's advice, he, together with Zale's dad set off to the sea. The odds however weren't unfortunately in their favor. The winds were just too strong and the waves became larger and larger that it tipped both of them off their boat. They weren't able to make it by morning.

The awful tragedy made me, my brother and Zale fatherless at that very instant. Caspian took over father's job and Zale, being the new head of his family, took over his. Our mother suffered from a heart complication after my father's death due to immense grief. Although she was able to recover, she was in no state to work at that time. So, I eventually joined my brother and together with Zale we worked daily on the boats, catching fish at sea and trading them at the market.

Work seemed harder than we expected despite our knowledge and experience when it comes to fishing. This was due to the fact that we had to juggle between working, going to school and training daily in case we receive the 'honor' of getting picked for the games. Training at the Academy in preparation for the games are optional here at 4, yet majority of the families find assurance by knowing that their children have knowledge in combat in the event that their name gets reaped. My parents agree with the idea, which is why Caspian and I were properly trained to fight.

Being prepared and properly trained doesn't however guarantee one's survival.

Caspian got reaped for the Hunger Games when I was 14. Although the training made him strong and well prepared, placing too much trust on the other Career Tributes cost him his life. My mother, who was still recovering from my father's death had another heart attack upon watching my brother's head got cleanly cut off with a sword by his fellow Careers on live television. I was in the town square with Zale when I watched the scene unfold before my eyes.

I wanted to scream. I wanted to cry. I wanted to throw up as the camera focused on my brother's decapitated head, eyes and mouth both open with shock still etched on his face. Instead, I just stood there, my face emotionless and continued to stare at the large screen in front of me. I did not notice the many pair of eyes who kept glancing at me, giving me looks of sadness and pity. I did not even notice when Zale pulled me away from the gathered crowd nor when one of our neighbors came running towards us, telling me that my mom has been rushed to the health center.

Normally, I would have cried a lot upon the arrival of the wooden casket containing my brother's body.

But I didn't.

I had to be strong for my mom. I had to be strong, because I hate showing weakness in front of many people. I had to be strong, because I had few more years left to possibly get reaped for the next games. I had to stand up for myself and get my act together. Because of this, I felt like an expert in hiding my true emotions most of the time. Whenever I am only sure that I am alone left to my own thoughts and nightmares, I silently cry and let it all out where no one else can see. It seems better that way.

I stretch my right arm out the window of the truck and try to feel the cool sea breeze hitting my skin. This would be mine and Zale's last reaping as possible contenders for the Hunger Games. We just have to get through this one last time and pray that none of us would get chosen.

"What are you so quiet about?" Zale says, as if seeming to know what I was thinking.

"What's wrong with being quiet?" I say. "I'm just enjoying the nice, _clean_ air before people from the Capitol arrive and pollute it."

Zale looks at me briefly from the corner of his eyes, clearly sensing the sarcasm in my words, then returns to look at the road ahead. "If you say so."

I say nothing in return as I continue to stretch my arm and watch my fingers being lightly pushed back by the impact of the wind.

Not long after, we finally arrive at the market place and Zale parks right by the entrance. "Cordi!" A small voice calls out to me as soon as I get out of the truck. I turn around to see Meredith, Zale's little sister walking towards me. Her shoulder length hair has the same brown color just like her brother and she looks exactly like a younger, female version of Zale.

She is carrying a basket filled with freshly baked bread. "Hello, Merry!" I respond. I give her a warm smile while lightly placing a hand on top of her head. Just like Zale, Merry has always been like family to me. Even when Caspian was still alive, I treated them as if they were my real siblings. "Where are you headed to?"

Just then, Zale appears from behind me and grabs a piece of bread from Merry's basket. "Hey! Those aren't for you!" She says. Zale just shrugs and takes a bite anyway. Merry pouts at him and hands over the basket to me. "These are for you. Mom asked me to buy bread and bring some of it over to your place, then I saw you and my brother from across the street and came here instead."

I take the basket from her and place it on the truck's front seat. "Thank you. Give my thanks to your mother as well." I smile as I tell her.

Merry smiles back at me then turns towards her brother and scolds him for eating other people's food.

"You should have said so at first!" Zale shrugs again as he continues to munch away on the bread.

"How am I supposed to when you already stuffed it in your mouth even before I could say anything!" The little girl retorts.

Merry is only 13, which is five years younger than me and Zale. Today will be her second reaping. Unlike us, she doesn't go to the Academy to train. She's too innocent and soft-hearted that she cries over freshly caught fish when she sees them struggling for their last breath. Teaching her to handle a basic spear, let alone any kind of 'weapon' for the matter will not have worked out at all. Zale tried to teach her once... She ended up crying and shaken up even before they got the chance to practice with the dummies.

I lean back against the truck as I continue to watch them bicker. Looking at them makes me remember the times with me and my brother and I suddenly miss him all over again. I immediately brush the painful memories off my mind and suddenly become aware of the time. "We need to get going." I say loud enough to catch the attention of the two in front of me. I make a gesture with my head, hinting on Merry to get in the truck while Zale makes our daily delivery to the merchant stalls inside the market. "I'll make it quick." He says to both of us before he disappears inside pushing the trolley with the containers of fish.

It's half past noon by the time I get home, with about an hour and a half left for me to get ready for the Reaping. I proceed to take a shower, and by the time I get back to my room I find a dress laid out on my bed as expected. This pale blue dress however, is not the usual one that I have been wearing during Reaping day for the past year or so. It is simple yet elegant and in pristine condition, almost like it was never used but the smell of fabric being stored for a long time in the closet is evident enough to tell me that it isn't newly bought. I put it on anyway and go downstairs to find my mom setting up food on the dining table. As soon as she sees me, she takes a look at my dress and a soft smile forms on her lips.

"That was a gift to me by your father when I was your age." She says as she comes closer to smoothen out the sleeves. "I wore it during the last year of my Reaping."

 _Just like me wearing it today,_ I thought. I smile back in return and give her a look as if to say 'thank you'. "It looks lovely." I say.

I face towards the mirror across the dining table as she silently begins to comb my hair. Just like my mom, we have the same light ivory colored locks. Although hers are silky straight, mine inherited the loose waves from my dad. I look at my reflection as she continues to fix my hair and find myself staring at my odd pair of eyes- my right with a shade of cerulean blue while my left has a tone of sea green.

My peculiar appearance doesn't look bad in my opinion, yet when I was younger it was because of my 'uniqueness' that some of the children my age fear me... thinking that I was some sort of a mermaid or a siren who will become friends with them at first then will drown them at sea later on. I find it stupid, but I couldn't care less. There were much more bigger things to worry about, like trying to not get picked to fight on a game of life or death.

"Done and ready." Says my mom as soon as she was done twisting some sections of my front hair and clipping them all the way to the back. I turn around and look into her cerulean blue eyes, those whose exact same color I inherited on my right one. I can still see in them the grief from the deaths of my father and brother, now mixed with fear for the uncertainty I am about to face during my last Reaping with my name entered.

We move to eat the lunch she prepared in silence. After helping her wash the dishes, she walks me towards the door and we share one last hug before I set off towards the town square.

I meet up with Zale and Merry and along with other children we make our way towards the Hall of Justice. The sound of the warning siren is deafening as we approach the registration table. Zale and I exchange meaningful glances and I give Merry whose hand I have been holding a light squeeze and the three of us go separate ways to stand by our respective age groups.

Soon after everyone is settled, our district escort steps in front of the microphone. "Welcome, welcome!" She chirps. I resist the urge to roll my eyes at her enthusiasm. Capitol people always act oblivious to the feelings us people from the districts have towards the games, and her excited demeanor every Reaping Day is the perfect example for it. I observe her overly colorful and exaggerated appearance to entertain myself as she continues to give the usual boring introductions following the Capitol video. As soon as the video ends on the large screen in front, I immediately take away my focus on her make-up and brace myself for what comes next. It's time to pick the district 4 tributes for the 73rd annual Hunger Games.

"Ladies first!" She says excitedly. This is it. I just need to get past this, and I'm free to grow old in peace. _Please not me, please not me, please not me..._ I chant in my mind as I watch her pick a slip from the huge glass bowl. She takes her time unfolding the paper in her hands and I hold my breath as I feel my heartbeat starting to quicken its pace. _Just read the damn name already!_ I mentally shout at her. She finally manages to straighten out the piece of paper on her hands and reads the name of the female tribute out loud.

"Meredith Wisteria!"

As much as I want to breathe a sigh of relief because it wasn't my name who was called out, I'm not able to.

Merry. Sweet and innocent Merry, Zale's little sister who cries on dead fish and cannot handle a spear, is the chosen female Tribute for district 4. As soon as her name registers on me and I begin to realize it, my sweat instantly turns cold. I look behind me over to the twelve and thirteen year old section and find Merry among the crowd. The color on her face is almost gone and all the children next to her watch as her frail body steps out from the crowd. My mind instantly starts to flash horrifying images of Merry in the arena: The little girl dying, just like Caspian. The same little girl getting her head chopped off, just like Caspian. Zale and his Mom being broken and devastated upon her death, just like me and my mom.

There's no way in hell I can stand here and let another person close to me die like Caspian did. Never again. Before I can even process what I'm about to do, I step forward and speak out as loud and as calm as I could. "I volunteer as Tribute!"


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

* * *

If my heartbeat could possibly go any faster than it already is, my heart has probably exploded by now. I can hear each thump loud and clear, feeling it vibrating all the way up to my ears. I quickly get a glimpse once more of Merry, whose expression suddenly relaxes the moment she hears someone volunteer yet suddenly morphs into that of horror the moment she realizes that it was me. I continue to step forward, my appearance very calm despite the opposite on how I would prefer to act. Slowly, I walk towards the stairs and up to the stage, completely aware of the cameras following me.

I am still not able to fully process what I have done; I have no time to... Not that it matters anymore. As of this moment, I am a tribute. I turn to face the crowd before me with my head held high.

"Splendid!" Our district escort says cheerfully. "What is your name dear?"

"Cordelia. Cordelia Devine."

I'm surprised at how confident I sound but I don't show it. I know for a fact that people from all over Panem will be watching, which is why I should be careful not to show even the slightest sign of fear. Ignoring her consistent chattering, I remain looking ahead of me to no one in particular. I don't dare scan the crowd, not wanting to look at my mom, or even Zale... Shit.

I immediately shift my focus to finding Zale. He must think I am a mad person for volunteering, not that he has a right to complain because it was his sister I just saved from this damn game. I know he won't just let this go and I know what he could possibly be thinking... But he can't. No. Only one of us comes out alive and that would mean he— "I volunteer!"

My thoughts were suddenly cut off and I feel the hairs on the back of my neck stand up as I recognize the voice from the crowd.

Without any moment to spare, Zale makes his way to the stage and joins us. I can feel my chest tighten as our eyes meet. I can't believe that this is happening. We face each other and I squeeze his hand very tight when we are asked to shake hands, wanting to convey all the feelings I am currently doing my best to suppress. Not long after, we are then led by Peacekeepers inside the Hall of Justice for our final good byes.

I find myself wrapping my mom in a tight embrace as soon as she steps inside the visiting room.

"Please forgive me." I whisper to her ear. She doesn't say anything but instead wraps her hands around me. My mom's heart has gone weaker, and here I am giving her another reason to have another heart attack. I should have just been selfish and just let Merry get chosen. Then again, I know I wouldn't have been able to live with that decision, and mom knows that. "I love you, mom." I tell her. She remains silent as I feel my shoulder start to get wet from her tears. I feel my chest hurt from the pain I'm currently inflicting on her because of my decision.

She pulls away from me after a while and takes out from her pocket something brown and woven which seems like a bracelet. The moment she puts it around my right hand, I realize what it is. Caspian. This was the very bracelet I gave to my brother when I was younger, right before he went to the games. I thought they buried it with him, but it looks like my mom had it all along. "Try to come home." She manages to tell me. I give her one last tight embrace, doing my best not to cry and not wanting to let go as a Peacekeeper suddenly comes in and ushers my mother out the door.

After a few seconds since my mom left, the door opens again to reveal Merry and her mother, whose eyes are evidently red and puffy from crying. Merry comes running to me and clings to my waist the moment she steps inside.

"I'm so sorry, Cordi!" She sobs.

I smile softly at her. "Don't be."

That's all I say as she continues to cry in my arms. It's not her fault.

It's not any of our fault.

I then turn to look at her mom, whose eyes are now forming new sets of tears. She takes my hand into both of hers, her expression mixed with guilt and sadness. "What you did, is a debt I don't think we will ever be able to repay." She tells me.

"Please look after my mom... especially when I don't come back." I say. I swallow as I feel a lump starting to form on my throat. Talking like I've fully accepted the possibility of dying feels heavier than I thought.

She gives me a silent nod, promising me. "Look after our Zale, as I know he will do the same for you."

I suddenly feel myself stiffen as I remember Zale. I forgot for a moment that he volunteered as the male tribute. "That idiot!"

I yell out so loud that Merry jumped away in surprise. I do not even bother that it's his family whom I'm talking to.

His mother gives me a look of understanding and places a hand on one of my shoulders. "He wouldn't have it any other way. Especially after what you did for Merry."

I stay silent, both my hands tightly grasping the sides of my dress. I fully understand that, but I just can't accept the fact that he might die trying to protect me. I volunteered to protect someone close to me, yet it ended up that someone else I care about takes the same fate to protect me.

How ironic.

Knowing that there's nothing else I can do to change the circumstances, I let out a heavy sigh and give a slight nod to the two people in front of me.

"I promise I'll look after him."

Just then, the door bursts open and inside comes a peacekeeper to usher them out.

"Visiting time's over! Tributes will need to proceed to the train." He says as another peacekeeper comes in to escort me.

Zale and I remain silent, not talking to each other as we board the Capitol train. Our district escort, whose name I learn is Griet Clementine leads us both inside an overly luxurious compartment. I look at all the expensive furniture around me as we are told to wait while she seeks out for our mentors.

"I will be back in just a moment. Make yourselves at home and enjoy all this—" She pauses for a split second to emphasize the word as she gestures her hand to our surroundings. "—for the meantime. And please try to behave." She smiles and then scurries out the door.

"Are you out of your mind?!" Zale growls at me, anger written all over his face as soon as Griet disappears from the room. This sets me off the edge.

"Oh, so you're the one mad at me now?! If someone's supposed to be angry here, that would be me!" I say as I begin to raise my voice.

"You could have waited for someone else to volunteer!"

"You were there, Zale! No one was going to volunteer! Your sister was going to walk to her death if I haven't taken her place!"

"I didn't ask you to volunteer for her!"

I stood there, my face momentarily flashing an expression of hurt before I quickly change it into a stoic manner. I don't shout this time, yet anger is still clearly evident in my voice.

"Well, I didn't ask you to volunteer either. I do not need you to protect me."

I know he didn't mean what he said judging by the sudden regret I can see in his eyes but I'm just too pissed off at the moment to even care.

Everything about this set up is wrong. It's either both of us dies, he only dies or I only die. I don't want to die and he knows it, which is why he volunteered, yet I can't let him die keeping me alive either. What a very messed up life I am in.

"Why, aren't you a lively bunch!" We both turn our heads to see Finnick Odair, district 4's most famous Victor, leaning by the door of the compartment with a playful grin on his face. He then moves to approach us and that's when I notice that there's an old lady together with him. I recognize the lady as Mags, one of the oldest Victors currently alive from district 4 and possibly from all over Panem. I once heard that she was Finnick's personal mentor during his games.

She stands over next to Finnick and shows a sympathetic smile to the both of us. They must have heard our argument.

"Is there anything you guys need to settle before we proceed?" Finnick teases.

"No." Zale and I both immediately say at the same time, the tension in the room already dissipating yet it's still obvious that we are mad at each other. I can see Finnick notice this but he doesn't seem to pay any mind.

"Excellent!" He says as he claps his hands together. "So... Cordelia and Zale, if I'm not mistaken?"

We both nod.

"Well, I'm Finnick and this over here is Mags, and we're going to be your mentors." He says smoothly, still having that charming smile plastered on his face. I can see why he's rumored to be famous among the Capitol women, the guy can charm anyone with just flashing those pearly white teeth at them.

He gestures for all of us to take a seat on the nearby couches. I quietly sit down and Zale follows beside me. I'm still not talking to him.

"Now, where should we start?" Finnick says as he gracefully plops down on one of the satin couches, and I can't help but be curious on his easy going and playful demeanor. "Based on your little show earlier, I assume that you know each other?"

I don't answer, still obviously pissed. It's Zale who then responds.

"Yes. We have known each other since we were kids."

Finnick looks at the both of us thoughtfully, and suddenly he looks a bit concerned. "The both of you aren't a couple, are you?"

"No." We both respond at the same time, just like we did a moment ago. He raises his eyebrows at us.

"We're more like family." I finally say. I can see Zale from the corner of my eye nodding in agreement. "Our families are pretty close."

Finnick considers this piece of information and beams. "Alright then! Judging from your physiques, the two of you either trained at the Academy or have been working on the boats." He states.

I give a slight nod to confirm his assumption. "We do both, the Academy and the boats." I say.

He looks impressed. "Great! Neither of you will have any problems getting in the Career pack when it comes to skills." He begins to pluck some grapes from the bowl in front then surveys the both of us. "When it comes to appearances, you aren't bad either."

I awkwardly shift from my seat. Surely he doesn't mean me right? I mean, Zale is obvious. Although he has ruddy skin from being exposed to too much sun, his fine physique makes up for it. His body is big and well built, yet his squinty eyes look so innocent and the dimple on his chin makes him look somewhat gentle and approachable. All the girls our age used to fancy him back home. Whereas for me, I may seem to not appear awful to some but I feel that my odd appearance makes me look weird. I look back at Finnick as he pops a grape into his mouth and smirks at me.

"That means also you, poppet. Your hair is very distinctive and you look beautiful. "

I can't help but blush a little bit when he uses a pet name, all the more when he compliments me. This guy is definitely quite the charmer. I don't really get compliments on my appearance except from my parents and my brother.

I refrain from rolling my eyes and instead tease him. "Not everyone wins the games through a pretty face like you."

"Honey, you'd be surprised that I'm more than just a pretty face."

I can't help but grin at his self-confidence. It's true though, I've seen clips of him fighting during his games. His looks are definitely a bonus, earning him a trident from his sponsors. I remember seeing him becoming deadly the moment he took hold of it. He wouldn't be the ultimate pride of district 4 if not for his impressive fighting skills as well.

"So how are we gonna do this?" Zale suddenly throws in.

"First, we watch the recap from the Reapings. We need to have an idea of your competition." Finnick says that last bit when he sees me hesitate. "Afterwards, you both try to rest and we'll pick up from where we left off tomorrow before we arrive at the Capitol."

Griet then suddenly enters to check in and collect us all for dinner. I stand up and follow the others us she leads us to the dining car. As I take a seat, I can't help but gaze at the lavish serving of food in front of us. We may not have been hungry at 4 but the food here are quite uncommon. There are a few in the table that I could identify from during feasts back home, the rest I haven't seen before in my life. I decide to stick on eating the ones I am familiar with for tonight. I'm not really hungry anyway.

As soon as we are all done, we gather to watch the replay of the Reapings from all the districts. District One tributes look like the typical Careers: confident and cocky. I don't doubt that they have skills, since 1 and 2 take training for the games strictly. Again, I really don't understand what goes on in their heads... They must really be the Capitol's lapdogs to be proud and honored to join the games and be ready to kill.

Nothing could have ever more supported my recent thoughts as soon as the District Two tributes are shown in the screen. They look just as arrogant as the tributes from 1 but a lot more intimidating. The female tribute, albeit rather small and younger than me and Zale, looks menacing. Her dangerous grin gives out a look that she is definitely not someone you would want to mess with.

If the girl wasn't enough to intimidate me, her district partner did. As I watch the boy volunteer and step up into the stage, I involuntarily shiver. He is big and brawny and the look on his face tells me that he has been waiting for this opportunity his whole life. He would no doubt give Zale or even the boy from 1 a run for their money. Judging from his physique, I wouldn't doubt if he is stronger than the two at all. I wouldn't doubt if he would be able to kill me using only his bare hands either.

District Three tributes aren't much of a threat, thank goodness. They look timid and a bit aloof, but according to Finnick that doesn't mean we should count them out or anyone outside the Career pack for the matter. There are times that the most unexpected tribute ends up turning the tables around. Johanna Mason, a Victor who won the games 2 years ago fooled everyone by appearing weak. It turned out she was deadly and highly skilled with an axe and ended up killing off the remaining tributes as the games were coming to an end.

Finnick explains that there are also times that a tribute wins out of luck. I immediately thought of Annie Cresta, the girl from our district who won and survived by being the best swimmer when an earthquake broke a dam and flooded the entire arena. She had gone mentally crazy after watching her district partner brutally killed. I'm honestly surprised I hadn't gone crazy myself watching her games... It was my brother after all who was beheaded in front of her.

I turn to focus again at the screen in time to see myself and Zale standing at the stage. I'm just glad I managed to look at least impassive and not showing how anxious I was despite volunteering. Zale looked confident and ready, and judging by that impression I don't think I have to worry about him just yet.

The other following tributes seemed relatively ordinary except for the boy from 11, who I think is even bigger than the scary boy from 2. I definitely do not want to have to face him one on one in the arena.

As the program ends, Griet tells us to get some rest and leads Zale and I to our own private rooms.

I sit by the edge of my bed, trying to digest everything that happened today. I know that this is real and that it is for a fact happening, yet I can't seem to bring myself to fully accept my current situation. How was Caspian able to hold up back then?

I begin to reminisce the last few moments with my brother before he was sent to the games as I consciously fiddle with the bracelet I'm wearing. My mom is very skilled with weaving. She taught me how to weave nets using any type of rope or thread. During her spare time, she makes woven bracelets as a hobby and sells them. Not long after, I started to help her during my spare time as well.

The bracelet currently around my hand is the very first one that I have managed to create. I gave it to my brother as a token from home before he left for the Capitol. I wouldn't have expected it to be the very same token I will be bringing to my own games.

I suddenly get interrupted from my thoughts by someone knocking. I assume it is Zale so I take my time before I get up. I'm still upset with him from earlier.

I sigh as I open the door, about to tell him that I'm not in the mood to talk just yet but instead I find myself face to face with a smiling Finnick.

"Hello!" He says cheerfully.

I raise an eyebrow at him, trying to question what brings him here when we are already supposed to get ready for bed.

"Aren't you going to let me in?"

Not wanting to be rude I step aside to let him in, all the while being curious by his sudden intrusion. He sits by the edge of my bed and makes himself comfortable by resting both hands on his side.

"So you may already know this, but while Mags and I will be mentoring you both, each of you will get a personal mentor as well so you can privately discuss personal strategies and other confidential matters. Lucky for you, that will be me!" He says and gives me a cheeky grin.

"Am I supposed to be excited about this news?" I smirk as I attempt to tease him.

"Quite sassy, aren't you? Your brother once mentioned that you aren't the type to show your true self unless you are already close to the person. Does this mean you're already warming up to me?"

I stare at him in mild surprise. I knew there was a possibility, but I didn't expect for Finnick to have mentored my brother. There are still other district 4 Victors after all.

His face changes from a playful expression to being serious all of a sudden. There's a mixture of grief and remorse in his green eyes when he looks back at me as a faint smile forms on his lips.

"Caspian and I knew each other since I was 13. He and I were sparring partners at the Academy until I got reaped. I promised to continue practice with him after I won the games but there were certain duties from the Capitol that I can't avoid. We never again got to see each other as often not until he was reaped during his last year, same as you."

I slowly sit down at the bed by the edge opposite from him, trying to sink in his words as he looks down knowingly to the bracelet around my wrist.

"We frequently talked about his life back home at 4 during his stay in the Capitol. He mentioned that his mom had a heart attack when his father died at sea. He also often talked about his little sister Cordi who made the bracelet he was wearing, and he says she is quite stubborn at times and probably would continue doing dangerous work on the boats in case he won't be able to return." He continues as he looks at me thoughtfully.

That's definitely something Caspian would say about me. I still remain silent as I listen to him talk.

"I knew you reminded me of someone when we first met earlier. I recognized the same blue eyes from your right one over there." He smirks slightly. "Why is it that your hair is different?"

"I got the color of my hair from my mom. My dad's a deep shade of brown, which is where he most probably inherited it from." I answer back, my voice soft and quiet.

Finnick doesn't say anything else. He gives me a silent nod before he stands up and walks by the compartment window, looking outside to what seems like nothing but blurry silhouettes of trees and mountains. I remain sitting on the bed as I begin to stare out as well. After about a minute, he decides to finally break the silence.

"I'm sorry I wasn't able to save him." He whispers so silently I wouldn't have been able to hear it if not for the absence of any unnecessary noise in the room.

I stand up, his back still facing me as I stand next to him by the window and softly pat his right shoulder.

"It's not your fault."

It seems to be the only thing I could say to almost everyone grieving right now. None of us deserve this. I understand that this brutal law was decreed to remind us of the past revolution, but too many years have already passed and too many innocent people have been involved. Why should the Capitol continue to punish us for the wrongdoings of our ancestors?

I take a glance at Finnick to find him looking back at me with a gentle smile.

"I'll get you out of this alive." He says. "I already failed to save your brother, I'm not going to let that happen again with you."

I turn to face him. He looks really determined to keep me alive.

"You know that surviving this game is a bit unpredictable right?" I tell him and I can see in his eyes that he knows it.

"Having the right strategy and a couple of sponsors will increase the chances of you winning."

"I don't know, Finnick... You will help keep me alive but what about Zale? I can't just abandon him and I haven't yet accepted the fact that he might die—"

"Zale volunteered to keep you alive, at least I understand that much from the heated discussion you two were having earlier."

"That doesn't mean I'm okay with it!" I snap back.

He lets out a sigh as he turns to face me and lightly grabs both my shoulders. "Of course you're not. Look, I promise to help him too, but as your personal mentor you are my first priority. Plus, you don't have to worry 'cause he has Mags. Don't underestimate her mentoring ability, she is the reason why I am alive right now."

"I'm not underestimating anyone, tribute or not." I mutter.

"That's my girl." Finnick says as he lets out a soft smile. "I know you are in a difficult position, but we'll get through this together Cordelia, I promise. You'll have to trust me." His sea green eyes stare at me with sincerity in them.

"It's Cordi." I suddenly blurt out. His expression slightly turns confused.

"My brother seems to have trusted you, and I know you did your best to take care of him despite the um, 'unfortunate' results..." I see him flinch a little bit when he understands what I meant saying. "Besides, you're the only person left who seemed close to Caspian aside from my mom, and she's not here now. Aside from Zale, you're the closest thing to family I got right now." I say.

Finnick smiles at me genuinely. "I know that no one could ever take over Caspian's place, but I've always wanted to have someone who I can call my little sister."

"I'm not little, I'm already 18." I say.

He immediately brings back that signature playful smirk on his face and gently pats me on the head as he makes his way to the door. "Oh, you're warming up to me alright."

Before exiting the room, he turns around to me one last time. "Tomorrow morning, we'll talk about all the possible strategies you can make and what to expect when we arrive at the Capitol. Make sure you get some rest because you guys will be having a long day ahead of you. Good night, Cordi." He winks at me before disappearing outside.

I roll my eyes to myself at his flirtatious behavior. It must be how he keeps himself in check in front of other people, just like how I remain looking impassive every time I get sad, nervous or even scared.

Exhaustion creeps up on me as soon I am left alone once again in my room, so I quickly clean myself up and get into bed. I stare out the window of my compartment once again as soon as I lay down, watching the moon shine bright over the blurry landscape outside before I unconsciously close my eyes and drift off into a deep slumber.


	3. Chapter 3

**_I'm so sorry I haven't been able to update lately! Work is not treating me well that I need more inspiration lol! I promise to update again soon. Thank you so much for the follows, favorites and reviews! 3_**

* * *

 ** **Chapter 3****

* * *

A sudden loud and steady pattern of knocking on the door wakes me up.

"Cordelia, darling! It's time to get ready for breakfast! Everyone's waiting for you in the dining car." Griet calls from the other side.

Her annoyingly high pitched voice is the last thing I want to hear while I'm still in my half-asleep state. I respond with a groan as loud as I could muster to indicate that I heard her. It must have worked because I hear the clattering of heals getting farther and farther away, following by the sound of another door sliding to open and then afterwards closing.

I attempt to open my eyes as I adjust to the daylight drifting through the compartment window. The overwhelming events from yesterday must have taken its toll on me because I still feel dead-tired even though I seem to have gotten enough hours of sleep. Slowly, I finally manage to get up and drag my feet to the shower. As soon as I'm done getting dressed and fixing myself up, I head out the door and make my way to the dining car.

Zale, Finnick and Mags are already gathered at the table and having breakfast by the time I arrive. They are currently busy discussing among themselves when Finnick is the first to finally notice me.

"Good morning, poppet! You seem to enjoy your bed. Finally decided to join us?" Finnick grins as he takes a sip from his cup of what I presume is tea. The aroma is nowhere near how coffee should usually smell. I've never had tea before; They're more expensive than coffee back home and you could only get them from selected trading merchants.

"On the contrary, my room feels rather small and the bed sheets look very plain... I thought it would be much better to hang out here. It feels much more __extravagant__." I say with a dull and mocking tone.

Griet, who clearly did not hear my sarcasm chimes in. "Wait till we arrive at the Capitol, your rooms are five times bigger and the interior is just exquisite, you'll __absolutely__ love it! I'll have to address the game makers about the rooms in this train. Oh, I just knew that I'm not the only one who finds bed sheets made of silk so outdated! You and I certainly have the same __wonderful__ taste."

She smiles at me adoringly before she walks off to the coffee table at the other side of the room, talking about having to double check our schedules for the day. I manage back a fake smile at her, thinking to myself how much of an idiot she really must be.

I proceed to sit down next to Zale at the dining table, who like Finnick and Mags, is currently trying to stifle a laugh at my unexpected exchange with Griet. He seems to be already in a good mood. I don't feel that much upset with him anymore, but it still feels kind of awkward feeling the remaining tension between the two of us.

Shaking off my uneasiness, I nod a little to acknowledge him and turn to talk to Finnick. "So... Would you like to indulge me on your previous conversation?"

"We were just telling Zale about the Capitol and what to expect when we arrive there dear." Mags joins in as she smiles softly, taking a sip from her cup as well.

Her drink smells exactly like the coffee back home; I usually take a cup to keep me awake in the early morning before we set out to the sea, only the one in her hand right now has another rather nice aroma mixed with it. Some type of highly expensive spice, maybe?

Mags appears to notice my attention on her drink, and asks for the servant standing by our table to give me a cup the same as hers. I take a sip from the drink served before me and feel myself relax from the enticing aroma. The added taste of this particular spice is different. It makes the coffee more delicious.

"It's cinnamon." Mags says.

Confused, I just look at her.

"The coffee, dear. The mysterious aroma you smell is cinnamon. I was attracted to its smell as well when I first discovered it. I preferred taking my coffee with it ever since."

The corners of my mouth lift to a small smile as I stare down at my cup. Playing with the teaspoon as I stir my drink, I get back into topic. "So what to expect about the Capitol?"

I sense Zale wanting to answer from beside me but gives a quick double take. He casually coughs as if to clear his throat before answering me anyway. I wouldn't have noticed the tiny act of hesitation if I didn't know him so well. "Finnick over here says that the Capitol people have a tendency to be obsessed with the tributes."

Still stirring, I shift my eyes from my coffee to Finnick. "Oh? Is that based from experience?" I say, the words drawling from my mouth.

Finnick leans forward towards me, placing an elbow on the table while resting his chin on his palm. "You'd be surprised, love, how even men fall at my feet."

"Your confidence sure is overflowing, pretty boy."

"That's not confidence, that's honesty— Ow!"

Mags pokes the other end of her teaspoon sharply into Finnick's rib cage, causing him to suddenly yelp. "Stop praising yourself, __pretty boy__. Tell these dears what they need to know. We'll be arriving soon."

I let out a soft chuckle. Mags and Finnick seem pretty close, like mother and son. It's obvious how Finnick values the old lady very much. He may be the playful type who likes to joke around often, but when it comes to Mags, he treats her with respect and adoration. Watching him being scolded is pretty entertaining.

Finnick gives her a pout and reaches for his side to rub the area he was jabbed by the spoon. "Right." He mutters and his expression turns a bit serious this time as he looks at the both of us.

"So, I assume you two are familiar with sponsors." Zale and I both nod as he continues. "Our main goal, aside from surviving of course, is to get you as much sponsors as we can. For that to happen, we need them to be able to like you."

"What if they don't like me?" I ask.

Sensing my worry, Finnick continues to explain. "When it comes to attracting sponsors, looks may be a bonus, but it's not the only factor. There are a lot more. It could be because of any special skills you have such as your weapon skills, maybe one's personality... or perhaps a tragic back story, among others. There will always be something that we can use. We just need to look for it and figure out what kind of role you're going to play."

I raise an eyebrow at him. "Role? You mean I need to act or something?"

He gives me a look as if stating the obvious. "The games are more than just a battle for survival, it's a television show. If you manage to give the people good entertainment, the more they'll want to keep you alive and keep the show going."

I mentally shudder at the thought of us killing each other as "entertainment". Looks like we have no choice but to go along with this if we want to survive. I have no idea how to get through this act though. I'm good with hiding my expressions, if that helps. What kind of role do I have to play anyway?

"What do you have in mind?" I finally ask, starting to get overwhelmed by my thoughts.

Finnick gives us a wide smile as he eats some berries he just plucked from the fruit bowl in front of us. "Right now, both of you just need to be yourselves. Act like how you usually do when presented with a situation. We'll work on more of your strategies as we go on with the show."

"Are you sure you want me to 'be myself'? Because I'm sure you know quite well I don't usually show __myself__ in front of most people, let alone those I've barely met." I tell him as I recall our conversation last night when he revealed that he knew my brother.

"Exactly where we're going. Just be your usual self. I'll be guiding you with the rest of what you need to know or do. Remember what I told you? Just trust me."

He looks into my eyes as if to remind me of our previous conversation where he promised to do everything he can to keep me alive.

"Alright." I respond. I really have nothing else to say so I just finish what's remaining of my coffee before it grows cold.

"Take the whole morning to relax and prepare yourselves before we arrive at the Capitol. When we get off the Train, do your best to smile and acknowledge the crowd that will be welcoming you. First impressions always count. We might be able to gain potential sponsors by that alone. Zale, you might already know this since Mags talked to you last night but I'll be repeating it again. Most of your main strategies will be discussed together with her. Cordelia and I will do the same." Finnick instructs.

Zale seems to not like the idea of having separate mentors. "Wouldn't it be better though to mentor us both at the same time? It's not like we plan on being enemies in the arena anyway."

He has a point, but I'm sure there are matters he needs to discuss without me having to hear them. I'm sure there are several of his strategies that I would definitely disagree with— those that involve possibly sacrificing himself for my sake. I'm perfectly aware I couldn't stop him no matter how many times we will be arguing about this which is why I prefer to not hear nor discuss about them.

For the first time since yesterday, I speak to him directly. "I like the idea of having separate mentors. There's no harm in having private trainings anyway. We're not strangers to each other so we can rule out the possibility of stabbing the other to the back. Both of us will still have mentoring time together. This is just bonus training and time to discuss our personal matters with our mentors. Both of us will be needing that."

"That's right." Finnick says. "We have been mentoring a lot of tributes for many years now. Aside from this being the standard procedure, we're quite sure you're going to need private time with your mentors no matter how close you are with your district partner. You'll have to understand that this is for both your own good."

Zale says nothing, but gives Finnick a curt nod.

"I may be old, but you'll learn a lot from me. Don't count me out just yet." Mags teases.

Zale scratches the back of his neck. "O-oh, it's not that— I didn't mean to— I just—"

Mags lets out a soft giggle. "It's alright dear. I happen to understand." She replies and gives him a wink.

He blushes at the old lady's gesture and averts his eyes... then clears his throat once again and looks at me. "We better clean up and get ourselves ready. We'll be arriving soon."

"He's right! We have approximately three hours left till we arrive. Chop chop, everyone!" Griet squeals as she now appears to stand behind us.

We all stand up to get ready. After taking a shower and getting dressed, I wander around the train since there's still some time left. There's a separate compartment on the far end that I discovered to be another lounge, similar to the one we were in when we first got on the train yesterday. This room is significantly smaller, yet the interior and the furniture are no less expensive than any other part of the train.

I take a seat on one of the corner sofas and stare outside the huge window before me. I have a very clear view of the outside in this position. Some of the landscapes I see are a bit disturbing but unexplainably beautiful at the same time. Maybe it's because I haven't really been outside of 4, and everything I see is pretty much new to me. No one really gets the opportunity to see what's outside of one's district except for people from the Capitol, some officials, very rich people such as high class merchants, Victors and tributes like us sent to their death.

Zale sits down beside me and faces out the window as well. I did not notice him enter the room since I was so engrossed with the scenery. "Hey..." He says.

I look at him from the corner of my eye, and continue to stare back outside. "Hey."

"What are you doing here?"

"Nothing much, just taking a bit of rest before everything goes insane."

He pauses a bit before replying. "There's not really anyone or anything about this country that's sane anymore though."

I smirk at his response. He turns to look at me and attempts to ask something that from the look on his face, seems to be bugging him. "You and Finnick seem to be close already from just a night's conversation. Am I missing something?"

His voice sounds teasing yet I clearly hear the tone of over protectiveness in it. Ever since we were young, Zale is very protective of me especially when it comes to befriending men. He says that most boys have hidden agendas when it comes to befriending girls, and him and Caspian are among the few exceptions. I try my best not to roll my eyes as I recall the memory. I always think he's just being over exaggerating. Besides, I'm more of the type who gets bored with activities that interests most girls our age which is why I get along well with the boys instead.

I give him a shrug and shift to a more comfortable position. "Him and Caspian knew each other way back. We talked a lot about some stuff. I figured it's best to trust him and Mags with getting us throughout the games."

"And you're gonna let him in just because he knew Caspian? Sure, he'd be able to give you essential advice and probably nab a couple of sponsors... but you've seen how easy going the guy is. You can't just depend everything on him to keep you alive."

"Who says I'm just going to depend everything on him? Have you forgotten what kind of person I am, Zale? Do I look like the type who just depends on someone to get past my own obstacles? Did I ask __you__ to volunteer for me? And anyway, you're in no position to judge him when you barely know the person. You don't know what he's been through nor what he really is like."

He looks clearly frustrated, pinching the bridge of his nose with his fingers as he carefully comes up with a response. "Look, Cordi. I'm not blaming you for wanting to save Merry. I know I am thankful for it, but you have to admit that volunteering without even making sure no one will first was a pretty stupid move. "

"We all know very well that not every year someone volunteers. A good several seconds have already passed before I even stepped up to volunteer. And what if I didn't and no one ever did? I could even already see some peacekeepers about to move forward to escort her to the stage by the time I have spoken out. Besides, if there's someone who made a much more stupid move between the two of us, it was you."

My temper is slowly rising but I try my best to remain collected despite my sharp words. I'm not in the mood to have another row with Zale on the same issue. Judging by his expression, he looks like he's thinking the same.

Still irritated, I turn to look out again through the window. "If you came here only to rub my supposed 'mistake' again on my face, I'd appreciate it if you just leave before we fight again over something that doesn't really matter anymore right now. There are plenty of other important issues we should rather be discussing instead of arguing over something that given our circumstances, is considered petty. I don't really need to be in a bad mood before we even arrive at the Capitol."

Zale doesn't say anything and I do the same. We remain like this for a while when he decides to finally break the silence.

"You're right." He says. "I'm sorry I went out on you like that. I was just surprised at first... I didn't really expect you to volunteer and when you did all I could think of was you doing it for my sister's sake. I couldn't let you sacrifice yourself for us. I wasn't really thinking straight that time, all I know was that I wouldn't have let you go through the games alone..."

I let out a tired sigh. "I don't blame you. I would have done the same in a heartbeat. Like I've been telling everyone lately, it isn't your fault. You only did what you think you had to do... Just promise me one thing. You will never sacrifice yourself in any manner to keep me alive. We will work on this together. I will have your back as much as you will have mine and we'll protect each other in the arena as much as we can. If I however die or I'm about to, then that's what's meant to be. You will go and save yourself and not drag yourself to the grave in the hopes of saving me. I will not let you die for my sake. I won't be able to live with it. Both of us ending up here as tributes is already hard enough as it is. You must _try_ to promise me that."

I'm aware that this is a long shot but at least I made it clearly known to him that I want him to fight for his own life just as everyone would. Suddenly, a part of me feels like it doesn't matter anymore if I die as long as Zale wins. I know I still have my mom, but I'm sure Zale will be able to take care of her together with his mom and Merry in case I don't make it. They need him.

I look at Zale as he stares at me. I can't seem to figure out what he's thinking, but it does not take long before he answers anyway.

"Alright. So are you over being angry at me now?"

I smile ever so slightly as I see him back to teasing me. I'd like to think that everything's back to normal, but it's obviously definitely far from it. He may have agreed to my deal, but I know for a fact that anything can still happen when the situation comes.

I stand up as the giant barricades guarding the Capitol come into view. They look even more huge than what it seemed the more we come closer to the entrance of the city. On top of the wall, there are a significant number of Peacekeepers posted and guarding. I doubt that even if people from all the districts would come together they won't be able to take this wall down.

"You should be thankful I can't stay angry for too long at you." I say, raising an eyebrow.

"Let's go before Griet comes to fetch us, I don't want to deal with her chirpiness right now."

Zale chuckles at my displayed annoyance on our district escort. He stands to join me as we make our way to the main compartment. I glance out the window before I leave the small room, just in time to see us enter the barricade and be welcomed by hundreds of tall, modern and luxurious constructions and buildings all around. The Capitol indeed looks stunningly beautiful and it's nothing I've ever seen before. As I turn my back and close the door, I wonder how a place so mesmerizing harbor people who are beyond disgusting.


	4. Chapter 4

_**Author's note: You might have gotten an update with this chapter— it's just a couple of typos I have found and corrected. Carry on~**_

* * *

 **Chapter 4**

* * *

We all gather inside the main compartment as the train approaches the station. The shapes of people standing on the platform stretching as long as my sight can reach become clearer and clearer as the train begins to slow down.

"Remember what I told you. Just be yourselves and everything will go as planned." Finnick reminds us as we make our way to the door.

I briefly nod before trying to smoothen imaginary wrinkles on my dress for what feels like the hundredth time.

Mags takes hold of my hand and I feel myself momentarily relax from the warmth of it. "Don't be nervous. Everything will be fine. Once we get out, they'll proceed to prepare you both for the Tribute Parade tonight. We'll see you after you're dressed and fixed up."

Before I can answer back, Griet suddenly instructs us to get ready. "Doors open in 1 minute! Look sharp, people!"

I smile gently at Mags and muttered a 'thanks' before going to stand beside Zale. The train has already come to a stop and although we could not see it, I am pretty sure there are a lot of people anticipating our arrival on the other side of the metal door in front of us.

"Ready?" Zale asks.

"Since when was I ever ready?" I answer back, staring forward at the door.

An arm suddenly drapes over my shoulder as Finnick appears in between us, plastering a smile showing confidence. His eyes tell another story otherwise. "Things are going to get crazy from here on out."

Just then, the doors of the train finally open and we can see the bright light of day blinding us. Finnick gives the both of us a pat on the shoulder before giving us a light nudge to step forward.

 _Show time._ I think to myself. Griet steps out into the platform first, clearly loving the attention people have on her as she urges us to move forward. I brace myself and take one deep breath to help maintain a calm appearance before Zale and I both finally step off the train.

A huge crowd of Capitol citizens have come to surround us. I find myself standing still for a brief moment as I scan my surroundings. The Capitol looks beautiful with its modern buildings and intricate designs. The people however, I still find looking hideous with their over decorated faces and clothing. I snap back to reality as I feel flashes of lights blinding me. Photographers and reporters are in front of us, pushing each other hoping to get a good shot or possibly a quick interview.

I look behind to find Finnick and Mags who have appeared to already step out of the train as well. A bunch of Capitol women fight each other as they wave frantically in front for Finnick's attention. I roll my eyes at the ridiculous scene and continue to face forward as Griet ushers our way out of the wild crowd.

"Ow!" I mouth silently as one of the staff strips some waxing paper off my leg. I don't want to cause a scene like the tribute beside me who keeps on shrieking, whoever she is.

"Glad we didn't get stuck with that one." One of them murmurs.

The three of them continue to wax off all the hair they could all over my body. I feel even more like a puppet being groomed for a show as they clean me up from head to toe. This is exactly what we are here for anyway.

As soon as they were done with me they bring me to an empty room. "Your stylist will be here shortly." One of them informs me before leaving.

The room was nothing but gray, dull and empty except for me and the 'dissecting bed' I was lying on. I continue to lay there as I stare at the boring ceiling above me. Who knew that getting cleaned up could be this tiring?

Just as I begin to appreciate the moment of silence and solitude, the door creaks open and in comes a small man.

I do not move from my relaxed state, not because I am unsure of what to do but because I would like to enjoy laying down for a bit longer. Oh, how I wish I could really be given a bit more time.

"Are you _that_ unhappy to see me?" The man says. He is now standing beside my bed and looking down at me as I continue to lay still and stare at the ceiling.

I let out a soft sigh before finally looking at him. That's when I notice that he looks more 'normal' than most of the Capitol people.

"You're my stylist." I reply, more like a statement rather than a question.

The man smiles ever so slightly and nods. He has dark skin and dark hair and except for the shimmering gold liner on his eyes and the gold hoop earrings to match, there is nothing hideous at all about him.

He stretches a hand out as if to shake hands but its gesture looks more as if to help me up. "You can call me Cinna."

Finally deciding to get up, I grab Cinna's hand as I position to sit upright.

"Cordelia." I answer back.

He smirks. "I know. You're beautiful. And brave."

Unsure on what he meant, I answer back confidently. "Of course, I've been training for this."

"I'm very sure you didn't want this." Cinna says. "That little girl during the reaping... you know her am I not correct?"

I am briefly stunned by his revelation and for a moment I hope my eyes did not give it away.

"Have you all been spying on us?"

The man chuckles at my accusation and smiles at me, this time more genuine. "Only the heartless would not be able to see the obvious, Cordelia."

I stare back at him for a moment, trying to find any form of malice behind his words. His eyes despite smiling are very serious and intense, yet they seem to bear no ill will on me. A stylist couldn't kill me after all, right?

Cinna begins to survey me. "Could you stand up please?"

He is rather polite than what I thought Capitol people are towards people like me. I get down from the bed as he assists me by holding up my other hand. He resumes to surveying my body once more as he circles around me. Finally he comes to a stop and places a hand gently on my shoulder.

"Contrary to what you may be thinking of me, I'm very sorry you are in this predicament. I'll work my best to make them see your worth."

Sincerity evident in his voice, I nod back silently.

"Shall we begin then?" He smiles warmly as he leads us out of the room.

In a large dressing room filled with mirrors for walls, I find myself standing in the middle as I am being dressed by the three staff from earlier who is now called my prep team.

"Tell me, Cordelia, what do you know about sea nymphs?" Cinna asks while the three continue to fuss about my appearance.

"Hmm, well... There are quite a number of legends about them in our books. They are said to be female spirits of sea waters. Others say that they are also called mermaids or fairies of the sea. They could be dangerous if they want to be, known to be luring sailors to their death if they are caught trespassing over their waters." I answer thoughtfully.

He nods and starts to pace the room in a slow manner. "Based on a mythology from one of our oldest ancestors, sea nymphs are creatures that symbolize everything that is beautiful and kind about the sea. They are very captivating and alluring. It is said that their appearances are one of a kind, making them stand out and draw the attention of people, especially men. Some reports from ancient times say that this is their greatest weapon. Underneath the kindness and beauty is a destructive force that can lead to your death if you cross their path wrongly."

I snort at his explanation. "So what, are you saying that I should captivate my way through the Capitol's hearts with my beauty?"

Cinna stops pacing for a brief moment and looks at me. "You, my dear, lack some confidence in yourself. Finnick is right. You need to believe in yourself more." He says as he starts to pace once again.

"In ancient history, sea nymphs are also said to be more than spirits. There were rumors and controversies that they were creatures that are part of a modern race living under the sea. This race looked very much like men. In fact, legend says that they were once a city more advanced that we could have ever thought of, built originally above the ground but later on sunk deep below."

"I think I read that somewhere in our district's library. This place was called Atlantis, right?" I tell him as I try to remember.

"Correct." Cinna responds back. "Atlanteans are said to be the highest and strongest of warriors of the sea. They grace all the creatures, both land and water with their strength and beauty. Many people since the oldest of times tried and tried again to prove of their existence, but none came back alive to tell the tale. You, my dear, along with your partner will grace the Capitol with this ocean's explicit wonder."

"A wonder indeed." One from my prep team exclaims as they seem to add the finishing touches to my make up.

"Indeed she is ready!" The other says as she claps her hands together. All of them are smiling giddily as they give me space to get a view of myself on the mirror in front of me.

I find myself staring at the creature in front longer than I meant to.

Her skin is lightly dashed with a bit of holographic glitter which makes it look glassy and at the same time sun kissed when light touches it. She is wearing a long dress which is a strapless dusty shade of teal, gray and aquamarine, much like how the ocean's waters as they dance together with the waves repeatedly. The design is so intricate, with pearls that shine like there's no tomorrow carefully lining her neckline down to the middle of her chest, outlining the tiny bit of skin shown by the design of her dress from her stomach that closes once again just below her belly button area.

The pearls continue all the way down, slowly scattering into sections that outline the curves of her body. When you look at them from afar, I begin to realize that they resemble the small waves when they crash amongst one another. Carefully slit through the side, the dress continues its length all the way down, longer at the back as the shade becomes lighter and forms into an ombre of white at the ends— just like how the waves crash the surface of land.

It fits her perfectly, I thought. The half top hugging her body flawlessly, its as if she got her dress soaked in the water with her. It continues to hug her features up till her thighs, where it slowly widens out into long layers. If not for the white hair, whose waves are a bit softer than before and those heterochromatic eyes of blue and green I would't have recognized that girl to be me.

"How long have you been a stylist for the games, Cinna?" I ask after a minute of silence.

"It's my first year." He says as he takes a step beside me. "I take it that you have no complaints about your costume for the evening?"

My eyes dart back to the figure in front of the mirror. Everything about my appearance has a resemblance of the ocean, my home. Moreover, I look like exactly what the books of legend describe. It's frightening and beautiful at the same time.

I smile as my eyes shift towards his reflection. "I think you'll be giving the Capitol a run for their money."

Cinna chuckles heartily at my statement, and helps me with the long flowy sashes to be placed on my arms as an 'additional accent'.

As soon as we make our way to the gathering hall, I could feel a lot of eyes on me. I manage to remain as calm and confident as possible as we make our way through the crowd of tributes and their respective crew until we finally found Zale and his own stylist, Portia.

Zale looked like a bonafide warrior of the sea just as the legend says. Just like Cinna, Portia kept it true to the stories and did a great job in portraying his outfit.

Although being half naked, his months of training and working at the boats have paid off as it shows with his athletic physique. He is clad in what looks like heave duty scale-like silver armor covering his left arm and a silver gauntlet on his right. His pants are fit to his legs, making it look like accessible for swimming. It is adorned with rough scales and spikes for patterns resembling deep sea creatures, all in the shades of dusty teal, gray and aquamarine, just like my dress. The rest of his armor is pretty much the same as it is designed with rough silver scales that glitter subtly through the light. They painted some symbols on the half of his face and body not covered by armor in white which makes his look a bit tribal. If their goal was to make me dangerously alluring, Zale was dangerously threatening.

"Wow." He says the moment he lays his eyes on me. "You look more human for a change."

I smack him in the arm. "Shut up. You don't."

"Easy on the armor Cordi. I'm kidding. You look amazing as you always do." He laughs as he evades my next attempt on smacking him on the head.

"Okay fine. Now I know you're bluffing you idiot."

"I don't think he's bluffing, love." Someone suddenly says. We turn to our right to see Finnick and Mags along with Griet approaching us. He lets out a wolf-whistle as he observes both me and Zale, then back to me again.

"You look magnificent! Everyone won't be able to take their eyes off you. Cinna, your work is excellent!" He says excitedly.

"A warrior and a goddess. Oh, I could already feel all eyes on us! We're definitely going to be the talk of the town this year!" Griet chirps happily.

True to what she said, all eyes were indeed starting to be fixed on us. I try to ignore the feeling, but something just feels so heavy, as if someone was trying to bore into me.

I pretend to fix the sash on my arm as I casually turn my head to the right to get a better glimpse of the people around. That's when I briefly saw a boy by the far end staring intently at our direction. I continue to fix my sash and pretend to not notice anything.

"Now. Since we are Careers, part of our strategy is to meet and introduce ourselves with the rest of the pack. You both don't have to act cocky to prove yourselves to them. Just do what I told you to do and act as how you normally would. Remember, just be yourselves. Come on." Finnick instructs as we walk towards where the rest of the Careers are gathered.

"Cashmere, Gloss." Finnick nods at the two mentors from 1 and then turns to acknowledge the ones from 2.

"Brutus, Enobaria. I'd like you guys to meet my tributes for this year." He says as he flashes that signature smile.

Cashmere crosses her arms and looks at me and Zale from head to toe. "Hm. They seem to be handling themselves pretty well. Especially this one..." She twirls a piece of her hair as she moves towards Zale.

"For goodness' sake, stop flirting with the tributes, Cash." The man named Gloss calls out.

The pretty blonde just shrugs at her fellow mentor before going back to his side.

"Let them talk with the others and let's see what they're capable of." Brutus grunts.

The five of them left us to meet the other Careers. I'm not a sociable type of person so I stand quietly beside Zale while he did all the introductions.

"My name's Zale. She's Cordelia."

"Why so quiet? Fish got your tongue?" The girl from 1 taunts. She's posh and pretty, having fair skin and blonde hair much just like her mentor. Their costume is hideous though, having consisted of pink feathers and diamonds.

"I don't talk to stupid blondes." I say, keeping my cool.

"What did you just say, bitch?" She growls, all the humor gone from her face.

"Now, now Glimmer. Don't piss off the pretty lady." Her district partner interjects. He stretches a hand out in an attempt to shake my hand. "The name's Marvel. If by chance you need some saving in the arena, I'm your man."

He then gives me a wink and I can't help but think if the people from 1 are all flirts.

"That's enough." A deep voice speaks out and I turn to look at the owner. He is wearing heavy gold armor from head to toe that looks like a gladiator. I remember reading them in our history books. If Atlanteans were called the warriors of sea, they were the warriors of land.

I recognize him as the boy from 2. He looks intimidating in real life as that on television, with his gray eyes boring into mine. That's when I realize that he was the boy who had been staring at me earlier from afar.

I never take my eyes away from him, but I silently wish he would stop staring already. If looks could kill, I feel that I'd probably be dead by now.

After what feels like a lifetime, he finally averts his gaze from me to Zale. He nods at him and Zale nods back, which seems sort of like an acknowledgement between our districts.

"We'll see you at training." He says before he and everyone else return to their carriages.

I'm not usually one to show I'm scared of something, but his rough and intimidating figure made me unconsciously let out a soft sigh once the other careers were out of earshot.

"That wasn't bad, was it?" Finnick suddenly appears from behind us.

"Little Miss Fish-Caught-Her-Tongue here almost picked a fight with one of them already." Zale tells our mentor.

"I would never." I respond, feigning shock. "She provoked me, I couldn't help it. She looked stupid anyway."

Finnick suddenly laughs. "I never knew you were that feisty, Cordelia."

"That would have to depend on her mood." Zale joins in to the teasing.

"Cut it out you two or I'll be the one getting your tongues." I growled.

Finnick raises up his hands in defeat and leans over to Zale. "Temperamental, that one."

Zale nods silently in agreement while I roll my eyes at the two. At least they seem to be getting along already.

"Cordelia, Zale! Oh, there you are! We need to get you to your carriages already. The doors open in ten minutes!" Griet orders.

We climb into the carriages while our prep team does some last minute fixing up on our costumes. Cinna hands me a small black remote with one button in it.

"When you reach the middle of the stadium during the peak of all the cheering, press this." He instructs and I nod obeyingly.

"Chins up, both of you. Show that you're confident. You are warriors. Descendants of the sea. You are beautiful and majestic creatures. You are dangerous and not to be stepped on. Keep those in mind… and don't forget to wave and smile." Cinna instructs the both of us for one last time as the gates begin to open.

"We'll see you later, dears." Mags beams as she and the rest of the crew retreat into the bleachers.

I look around as our carriages are formed into a line, in order by district. Looking at the outfits of the other tributes, I silently thank the game makers for assigning Cinna and Portia to us. Some just looked utterly ridiculous.

I also notice that our carriages have been decorated as well. District One is coated with diamonds that there's no doubt the shiniest one among us all. I look at our carriage, which is relatively a simple and plain white one. Our horses, however had holographic fins for their tails, manes and ears. Their bodies are sprinkled with holographic glitter as well making them sparkle subtly when touched by light.

The Capitol Anthem begins to sound off as trumpets and drums fill the air. We could hear the crowd starting to get excited with their cheers.

"Hey." Zale nudges me on the shoulder. "You ready?"

I smirk, remembering our last similar conversation. "When was I ever?"

He chuckles softly in return as our horses begin to pull our carriages out into the stadium.


	5. Chapter 5

_****Author's note:****_

 _ ** **Writing a story seems harder than I expected. There are times when there's a lot of things that I would want to happen, yet there are times that I don't know what I want to happen as well. Oh, well! Thank you to everyone who have been following this story so far and left reviews... And to those who are just starting to read this, please be nice to me! ^_^****_

* * *

 ** **Chapter 5****

I brace myself as we enter the stadium. A sea of people wearing different vibrant colors welcome us warmly with loud cheering and it would have been nice if not for the fact that we are parading to kill each other for their entertainment. I try to relax and position myself confidently beside Zale as we look up towards the crowd, smiling softly and waving every now and then.

It becomes almost deafening as the cheers start to get louder and louder. I could hear the crowd chanting our district as we approach the middle of the stadium. Remembering Cinna's instruction, I press the button of the small remote box I realize I have been gripping tightly.

Nothing out of the ordinary seems to be happening, not until I turn to look at Zale and see that the marks painted on his body are illuminated.

"Zale… you're glowing!"

I hear the crowd around us growing wilder than ever. I could hear them shouting our names distinctively as others start to throw roses towards our direction.

He laughs at my comment. "Check out your dress."

Confused, I look at myself and immediately notice the pearls, along with the other tiny stones scattered through specific parts of my dress glowing a beautiful shade of faded blue, making the flow of my dress like water from the ocean, moving back to and fro peacefully. The white part on the bottom of my dress glows the same shade as Zale's body markings. They must have been painted with the same paint used on him.

My dress looks like water itself hugging all over me. I am in awe with the piece of creation I am wearing. So is the crowd apparently, since the cheers for District 4 are loud more than ever. Together, both of us illuminate from the crowd, looking like the regal creatures of the sea that we are.

Our carriages come to a halt as soon as we are lined up before the Presidential Platform. The crowd becomes silent as President Snow comes into view and starts to give his welcoming speech.

Feeling the eyes of the other tributes once again on us, I look around to see the blonde named Glimmer scowling at me. She probably came to realize that she looks stupid in her outfit.

I smirk at the thought when suddenly I could feel that uneasy feeling again and can't help but glance towards District 2's carriage. Just as I suspect, I could see the boy from 2 staring at me once more. He shows no emotion this time yet I could clearly feel the tension in the air between us. He catches me looking back at him so I immediately look away.

"Is there something wrong?" The hint of concern in Zale's voice evident as he feels me slightly tense up.

"Nothing. I'm just awkward with all the attention that's all."

"Relax. You're doing great. The speech is almost over and we'll finally get to rest for the night."

Zale reassures as President Snow ends his speech and everyone from the crowd starts to cheer once again. I start to smile and wave one more time as our carriages are being pulled back into the gathering hall.

"You were beautiful out there, Cordelia. You both did a job well done."

Cinna compliments me as he helps me step down from our carriage. I notice that our glows have already dimmed out.

"All thanks to this dress. I believe a 'congratulations' on a successful debut is in order." I tease my stylist as Finnick and the rest start to join us.

"You two were absolutely perfect out there! Now we got everyone's attention, it's time to show them what you two are capable of. Let's discuss about that more after dinner. Shall we?" He says.

We all make our way to the exits as Griet keeps on gushing on us. My mind however keeps on wandering over our previous encounter with the rest of the Careers, especially from the boy from two. I find myself a bit worried by catching him staring at me- twice. Does he see me as bait or a threat? I won't certainly let it be the former but I don't want it to be the latter either. Maybe it is best that I keep this from Zale or Finnick, since I could just be over assuming things.

After an undeniably extravagant dinner, we all sat down in front of the television to watch the recap for the Tribute Parade.

 _ _Would you take a look at that, Claudius! The tributes from four seem to "lit up the room" as we speak! Do you see those costumes glowing? Absolutely Incredible!__

"I must say this once again, Cinna, Portia. You guys really did a magnificent job on our tributes' outfits." Finnick compliments as the others murmur in agreement.

I zone out from the rest of their conversation, trying to think of what lies in store for us from hereon out. I look over to Zale who seems to be listening to the conversation and trying to go along with it.

"Now, for tomorrow's training." Finnick suddenly interjects.

"I suppose you already know a lot of fighting techniques, so I suggest you both try to learn about those survival skills you don't know about yet. It's okay to show your combat skills, but I think it would be best to just show enough for you to be worthy of the Career pack and keep the rest to yourselves. We don't want to give away all your secrets." He says that last sentence teasingly and gives me a wink.

"Well, I'm not an open book but I don't have much of a secret technique when it comes to fighting." I say.

Mags elbows Finnick on the side, causing him to yelp. "What he means to say, dear, that while it would be good to show the others what you are capable of, you wouldn't want to give away all your strengths. That way your opponents won't be able to know all your possible weaknesses."

I nod in silence as they continue to give us tips and reminders.

"I think both of you will do just fine tomorrow." The old lady gives us a motherly smile of assurance.

We both nod once again in response, still not saying a word. It's pretty obvious that while it's expected of us to be capable as Careers, we aren't really prepared to be placed into a battle for our lives.

"So!" Finnick claps his hands to regain our attention. "I think you guys should get ready for bed. We got a long day tomorrow ahead."

So many thoughts are flooding my mind as we walk back to our sleeping quarters. Exhausted from everything that has been happening during the past days, I immediately drift into sleep the moment I plop into the bed and close my eyes.

My room has no windows so I am unable to distinguish what time it is as soon as my eyes open once again. I glance to my left and see the clock by my bed side.

 _ _6:00 am.__ Wow. I must have been very tired to sleep that long without disturbance. For me, it felt like I have been only out for five minutes.

The closet has only one piece of clothing in it which I assume would be our training uniform for the day. It fits me perfectly, as if saying that it is made for only me.

Everyone is already at the breakfast table busy chattering about today's agenda as soon as I enter the dining room.

"I see our little __siren__ is finally here! I was afraid I had to march up into your room and drag you out if you hadn't showed up already." Finnick says in his usual teasing way.

" _ _Siren?__ "

"Everyone in the Capitol is talking about you Cordelia! They call you ' _ _The Siren of District 4'.__ You and Zale certainly are the talk of the century with your stunning display yesterday! The trend you set is surely to become a statement!" Griet tells me excitedly.

I notice the eyeshadow on her lids are the same shade of paint used in our costumes yesterday. Are those glowing?

"Well that's certainly... fast."

Finnick laughs at my observation. "Capitol people certainly love the fad of the games."

Although he says that in a nonchalant manner, I know better than to not notice the despise behind those words.

"So I take it that we will be training the whole day?" I ask as I fill my plate with breakfast.

"Ready to kick some butt Cordi?" Zale suggests.

"Now, now, remember what we told you guys last night—"

"It's okay to show some of our skills but not all of them. We know."

Finnick pouts playfully when I cut out his sentence. I shrug in return and resume to taking a bite of my food.

"I don't plan on picking a fight with anyone anyway. The last thing I want is having someone out to get me. Well, not that we all already are targets amongst each other."

The image of Two staring at me from yesterday suddenly flashes into my head again and immediately I shake it away.

"Just be yourselves and play it cool. It's important that both of you would be able to establish something like a bond with the other Careers. That way you will always be considered as part of the pack."

"So you want us to play the part of being killers." Zale says.

Silence follows after his statement. I don't think anyone is sure on how to respond to that.

"We all become killers the moment we are declared as tributes. That's not a choice we are able to decide on." Finnick replies in a low voice.

No one responds after that. All we could hear now are the sounds of silverware bumping against each other as we go along with our breakfast when Mags finally speaks up.

"Heed his advice and be acquainted with the other Careers. Not everyone has the privilege to be part of a group with an advantage. Our job is to help you survive and go as far along the games as we possibly could take you. However, I only pray for you to not lose yourselves along the way for your sake."

What does the old lady mean? I think about what Mags said as we go down to the training center. Is it even possible to __not__ lose ourselves throughout all this?

We finally come to a stop and the door opens up to the entrance. Almost everyone is already here especially the rest of the Careers who are easily spotted hanging out over by the weaponry section.

"There they are."

"I don't think I'll ever be ready for any of this."

I nod and quietly sigh while Zale leads the way as we approach them.

"If it isn't our sea warriors. You guys made one heck of a show yesterday."

Marvel calls out first, smirking as the other three soon start to take notice of our presence. Glimmer scoffs at her district partner.

"Oh, please! We would have been ten times better if our stylists weren't such idiots. Feathers for the wealthiest district? Ugh!" She rolls her eyes to no one in particular.

The tiny girl from Two remains silent as she eyes me up and down.

"Guess you weren't that bad yesterday Four. Your stylists sure know how to dress you. The name's Clove. This over here is Cato."

She motions her head to the boy next to her. Her district partner Cato has his arms crossed as those gray eyes once again survey me.

"Do you think you have what it takes to be a Career?" He mocks.

"Even if I did, I haven't told you yet if I wanted to be one."

I do not know why did I just say that. It's like his imposing of authority makes me irritated that he wants to take control over me along with the rest of the group.

He raises an eyebrow and moves to stand directly in front of me.

"You've got guts, I'll give you that. Be careful in choosing your words though or you might end up as fish bait yourself." His voice low and taunting.

Zale places a hand on my shoulder and looks over to Cato.

"She can fight. Both of us have been training at the Academy. Her temper gets the better of her sometimes, so you'll have to excuse her sudden __unnecessary__ comments." He eyes me at the word 'unnecessary'.

"Basically, she's like a female version of Cato then." Clove says.

"This guy over here sometimes goes on a rampage when he gets angry. It takes at least two instructors at the Academy to appease him."

"Shut it, Clove."

The tiny brunette raises both her hands telling him she's done when just in time the head trainer calls out to assemble us.

After being instructed with the do's and dont's, everyone begins to roam around the different stations inside the gym.

As expected, our group heads toward the battle stations. Immediately everyone grabs a weapon and tries their hand on the target dummies. Clove is definitely a monster with those knives, hitting all the targets each directly in the heart every time. Small but definitely terrible.

I don't think she's more of a monster than Cato, though, who has just decapitated a practice dummy with a sword.

I mentally shudder as I imagine my brother's head being cleanly cut like that. Before the horror of the past creeps back up again, I shift my attention to the other stations nearby.

Right by the knot tying station, I spot the girl from Seven trying to do a knot on one of the ropes. She looks a bit older than Merry yet equally as frail like she could barely hold a knife. No one even bothered to talk to her, not even her district partner. __Poor girl__ , I thought. She doesn't deserve to be in this predicament, yet there's nothing I could really do to save her from this game. Feeling sorry, I decide to approach her.

"Hi." I say as I check out the knots she have been doing so far.

The girl stops and timidly looks at me. "H-hello."

She looks scared, probably because I'm one of the Careers.

"I think you should try this way instead. It's easier and faster, plus the grip holds better." I tell her as I grab a new rope to demonstrate.

She seems to listen attentively, eyes widening with fascination as I swiftly secure the knot in a matter of seconds.

"Wow. You're really good at this. Um... Do you mind doing it one more time?"

I smile softly at her and grab another rope while I teach her how to do it one more time.

"My name's Cordelia. What's yours?"

"Loralei... People call me Lora." She stammers while she clutches the bottom of her training shirt.

"Hey, Four. What do you think you're doing over there?"

I look back to the weapons station and see Cato and the others looking at me. They must have finally noticed me missing after a while.

I turn back to face the girl from Seven so he can't see me rolling my eyes.

"Nice meeting you, Lora. Good luck." I then say, smiling softly at her before going back to my group.

"So you think you're good enough to be lazing around already?" The annoyance in his voice is clearly evident.

"I just don't like violence." I shrug, keeping it cool.

"Maybe the _ _'Siren'__ doesn't really know how to handle a weapon."

Glimmer mocks as she continues to shoot the target dummy with arrows that I must say, are poorly aimed.

Not wanting them to underestimate me, I search for a weapon enough to show them what I can do but not really giving away that much.

I look over to the target dummies and see a spear plunged into the chest by Marvel. I grab a new spear from the rack and aim for the same dummy, throwing the spear towards the target's center. Marvel's spear detaches from the target and falls to the ground as soon as the head of mine hits the center and knocks it off.

Not being satisfied on satisfying them, I glance towards the dummies hanging by ropes on the other side. Seeing Zale holding out a trident to aim one, I immediately grab the bottom end from him before he manages to throw it.

"Hey!"

I ignore him scowling at me for interrupting his aim and throw the trident as hard as I could, hitting the target's neck and sending it sticking all the way to the wooden wall behind it.

I walk over to Glimmer, eyes slightly wide by my show of skills. "I said I __don't like__ violence. It doesn't mean I can't be."

She huffs as the head trainer then signals for lunch break and I turn my back to begin to walk with the others towards the dining hall.

"Told you she can fight." I hear Zale tell Cato who's behind me.

The boy grunts, sounding a bit satisfied but still probably annoyed by my un-caring attitude.

Clove seems to not be fond of Glimmer as well since she talks to me more than her. The six of us sit together during lunch of course, having confirmed that everyone from the group are worthy of the Career pack as allies.

I take a look around as the other tributes start to form their own groups. Finnick mentioned that it was during lunch of the first training day where everyone gets to form their alliances if any, having seen what each are possibly capable of. Lora, the girl I met from Seven however is sitting alone. I guess her district partner really abandoned her permanently.

"So how long have you been training at the Academy?" My train of thought is interrupted when Clove asks me.

"Zale and I have been training since we were 10. That's the youngest age where you can start to train."

"Hm. I guess it's the same for all the district's Academies then. Did you guys start around that age too, Marvel?"

Although he looks terribly busy with his food, he manages to swallow first before answering the brunette.

"Yeah. Back in One everyone is required to start training by the age of 10 as well."

"We aren't really required to train back in Four. It's optional for us." Zale says.

"No wonder its not every year that your district makes the Career Pack then." Glimmer answers.

I resist myself from making any further side comment and resume to eating my food.

"How long have you two known each other?" This time the question comes from Cato.

"Cordelia and I? Oh, we go way back. Our families have known each other since I can't even remember. Our dads were fishermen and they often go out at sea together." Zale responds before taking another bite of bread.

"Too bad you're in this together. You'll never get to see either win the crown then. That is, if one of you is gonna win." Glimmer states so casually, flipping her spoon and pointing it to both of us.

I know better than to let her get to me and since I'm too tired to even argue I quickly finish my meal and excuse myself.

"I'm going to go walk around for a bit."

Having an hour left for our break, I wander around the empty gym looking for something to take my mind off things. I pass by the archery station, seeing one of the target dummies Glimmer was practicing on earlier. There are about five arrows plunged into it, not one hitting the center.

I snort upon seeing this and I grab a bow and arrow while muttering to myself how incompetent she is as I aim for the center target. The arrow hits dead center as its impact echoes throughout the place.

"Looks like you have other talents beside your usual spear and trident." A low voice speaks out from behind.

I turn around to see Cato, observing me while he casually leans by the pillar with his hands crossed. How long has he been there?

"You'd be surprised how I could easily aim at someone." I say, trying to hide the fact that I wasn't supposed to be showing that to any of our fellow tributes. I just hope he won't go sharing this piece of information with his district partner or with the rest of the group for that matter.

He walks over to me casually as I place the bow on the weapons rack. Suddenly, he pulls a sword out of it and points it directly at my throat.

"You may be good at aiming, __siren__ , but my sword cuts a cleaner death than yours."

I stare at those sharp gray eyes, crossing my arms and trying to look unnerved by his taunting yet deep inside my heart is already beating wildly.

The tip of the sword barely touching my skin, it feels like it is taking forever before he decides to lower it down. I don't move an inch while he moves closer to slide the sword back to the rack, towering over me.

"Just because I need more time to figure you out, I'll let you live longer than the others in the arena. Consider that a privilege, Four."

"Cordelia?"

Silently thankful for the interruption, I look over the brute's shoulder to see Zale and the others enter the gym. Little by little, all the other tributes begin to pile inside along with the trainers and staff. He eyes me and then Cato who is still standing a bit too close for my comfort.

"What were you guys doing in here?"

"Probably shoving weapons at each other's throats." Clove suggests.

I raise an eyebrow at how almost accurate she is on her assumption. Well, it was only Cato's sword that came close to be shoved to my throat anyway.

The head trainer announces the resume for the trainings and instructs us to move to another station. The rest of the Careers apart from me and Zale are less than happy with the fact that we are forced to leave the battle stations to give way for the other tributes to have a chance to practice.

"What gives? They're already dead meat anyway." Glimmer scowls as she flips her hair off her shoulders.

I'm disgusted on how insensitive she could be with her words but still I remain quiet to avoid getting any wrong impression.

Moving over to the traps and snares station, I crouch down as I watch the instructor demonstrate a basic snare for me. Zale joins in and begins to listen attentively as well to the demonstration. As soon as the instructor finishes, he leaves us for a moment to practice creating our own.

"Did Cato do anything to you earlier?" Zale suddenly asks.

A bit surprised by his question, I casually lean over to grab a thread to tie the end of my snare. "Do you think he could have done anything?"

"We may be allies, but you can't deny that he's a dangerous man Cordi."

"All of us are dangerous. He just looks the part better than the rest of us."

"You know what I mean. The guy looks like he can snap a neck just with his bare hands."

I roll my eyes at him.

"Relax, Zale. I told you to stop worrying about my safety before your own right? I'm not disabled you know. I could defend myself when needed. I'll find a way if I have to."

He's being over protective again. I hate it when he treats me like I'm fragile. He even said so earlier— I know how to fight when needed. As much as I am thankful he got my back, I still won't accept him trying to put my safety first before him any more than what he has already done so far. I'm sure the other Careers have figured it out by now if they haven't already. Us being family friends will be each other's weakness.

But why does it look like I'm trying to defend Cato? It's not like I wasn't really scared of him earlier. We're not even close and I don't even know him enough yet. Zale's actually right. Even though we're allies, it doesn't mean that he is not dangerous. The instant he decides that we're of no use to the group anymore, everyone will automatically turn our back on us. That's how Careers work.

Irritated by my mixed up thoughts, I leave Zale behind at the station after I finish my own snare and went back to the knot tying station. Not needing an instructor to show me how to tie some efficient knots, I politely decline his offer for a demonstration and tried tying a bunch of knots on one rope to keep myself busy for a while. Back in Four, we use to do this a lot whenever we prepare to set sail. My chest tightens for a bit as I think of home. I'm afraid I might not be able to see the ocean again.

"Show me."

I hear that deep voice. It was Cato again, suddenly appearing from behind.

"What?" I ask, trying to bring my mind back to the present.

He nudges his head towards the rope in my hands and stands beside me. "Show me how to do that, whatever that is."

It was now my turn to raise an eyebrow at him.

"Since when do people like you become interested at knot tying?"

"Since the head trainer ordered us to go to the survival stations and I have nothing better to do at the moment."

He reaches over for a rope and attempts to tie a knot the same way as how I am doing it.

"If this is your attempt on 'figuring me out', I'd rather not show you anything." I say, still bothered with what he said to me earlier.

Too much interaction between us has already been going on for just less than a day of knowing each other that I'm starting to feel exhausted already. It bothers me that I see him as a dangerous and scary person yet I don't bother restraining myself from talking back to him. What bothers me more is that I seem to hold his attention more than I want to, and most of the time it feels like it's in a bad way.

"Thinking of how to kill me faster?" I ask sarcastically since he doesn't say anything else.

He eyes the movement of my hands as he continues to mimic my knots.

"Perhaps. But with that little frame of yours, I can easily wring your neck with my hand and choke the air out of you."

If I weren't that good at masking my emotions, I would probably shudder at his declaration. It's a good thing I'm a master at it, otherwise he would have figured out that he frightens me— not that he doesn't probably know that already.

His display of brute force and confidence emphasizes his claim for authority over our group. Clearly no one dares to challenge him so everyone automatically considers him as the leader of the Career Pack. Except for me and the rest of the Careers, everyone tries to steer clear of Cato. Who would even dare try to get on his bad side? I don't know why I seem to constantly do.

 _ _Stupid mouth.__ I tell myself. Why can't I just shut up with my 'unnecessary' comments, as Zale tries to put it.

I notice that he finally manages to do a successful knot. Placing the rope on the table next to mine, he whispers to my ear before he leaves.

"Better watch your back always, __little siren__. Someone might try to slit your throat from behind."

Feeling my throat forming a lump, I swallow as soon as he is out of sight.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

* * *

The rest of the day has been pretty much the same. It didn't take long after the instructor makes us try the other stations before the rest of our group decides to take over the weaponry section again. The other tributes, being too afraid to get in Cato's way cleared the area with no questions asked. Soon after, everyone gets tired despite them claiming it is only the first day and that they're just bored on doing the same thing over and over.

I have too much already of Glimmer's annoying comments on every single thing she can notice and the rest of the Career's discussion on who to kill first.

"Three, Five, the girl from Seven, the boy from Nine and both from Twelve. Those kids most likely won't get past the bloodbath." Marvel tells us and the others show signs of agreement.

Glimmer eagerly raises her hand. "I call dibs on one of them. Just imagine their faces while they plead for their life before they die."

Hearing them makes me sick. How could these people enjoy killing? Their view is just as twisted as the people in the Capitol. These are the kind of people Careers are and Zale and I are considered as one of them. It's no wonder everyone stays away from us.

"How 'bout you, Cordelia? Who are you going after?" Marvel suddenly asks.

Shrugging, I return the weapons I've used to the rack behind me.

"Whoever goes after me, I guess."

I unconsciously shift my eyes to Cato for a split-second before I look away. It's a good thing he didn't see me.

"Well you're no fun." Glimmer snorts.

"Unlike you, __blondie__ , I don't find killing fun. I prefer to do it fast and get it over with."

"Whatever way you guys do it, it'll all be useless once you end up dying." Clove says matter of factly.

She isn't entirely wrong. I realize that I don't think that I'm in any position to judge either, since I'm willing to kill when it comes to being able to save myself or the people that matter to me. In the end it doesn't matter whether you find the act entertaining or not. One's life will still be wasted by my hands.

I stare at my palms silently. I know I'm not a bad person, but I'm definitely not a good one either. So where do I stand in all of this?

The head instructor blows her whistle and signals the end of training for the day.

 _ _Finally.__

We all head to the elevators and go up our respective floors.

"Welcome back, you two!"

Griet seems to be in a good mood this evening. She rushes to the front door to welcome us as soon as we come in. It probably has something to do with us being the cause of buzz all over the Capitol again. Being our district escort, she seems very proud that we have been putting on a good show for everyone.

"So, have you guys managed to impress the other Careers?" Finnick asks.

His feet are up the coffee table while lazily lounging at the sofa together with Mags and the rest of the crew. I sit by the empty space next to them and as soon as I feel the softness of the couch I submitted myself fully into it. All the exhaustion from today is finally starting to kick in.

"What?" I say as Finnick raises an eyebrow at me.

I lay back on the head rest and close my eyes.

"Don't __'what'__ me, __missy__."

I open up one eye and see everyone looking at me, waiting for an answer. I sigh and sit up straight.

"Well, Zale and I are both in the pack."

Everyone murmurs in approval as Griet and Mags let out a sigh of relief. Finnick beams at me and claps his hands.

"As expected of the both of you! Now... How was your first day with them? Did you manage to learn something new? Did you both get along with them?"

" _ _I__ got along with everyone. Little miss siren here not only still holds a grudge against blondie from District 1, but she almost managed to get under Cato's skin." Zale says.

 _ _It wasn't 'almost'. I think I really did manage to get under his skin.__ I say in my mind. I don't want to openly admit that with Zale around, since he would definitely be extra protective of me. Knowing him, he would risk getting on Cato's bad side just to defend me as well. I shrug at them and resume to resting my back against the couch.

"He acts as if he has authority over us. He's got too much ego and it sometimes annoys the hell out of me." I drawl.

"District Two usually gets the title of being the leader of the Career Pack. It's simply because among all Career districts, they are the most trained and well-groomed tributes for the games. To put it simple— they're the most ruthless and cold-blooded murderers among everyone." Finnick explains.

My mind flashes back to Cato from earlier. Are glory and riches really all that's important to them? Somehow I refuse to believe that it's entirely true.

"All the more reason to hate him." I respond.

"Now, now. Don't end up acting reckless because of that hate, dear. It's good to have skill, but you need to have good sense of judgement as well." Mags reminds me.

I blush at the older woman's advice.

"Sorry Mags. Don't worry, I'm not one to not think before I act."

Zale scoffs from the side and I glare at him.

"I'm not doing anything." He says as he raises up his hands.

"Okay then! Tomorrow will be pretty much the same, but they'll probably be testing more of your abilities through different activities this time. Remember what I told you both. Don't show everything, only what's enough... and continue what you're doing. Act the way you guys are— do not engage in fights."

Finnick says the last part to me and I scowl at him.

"I'm not a war freak, Finnick."

He smiles a little more gentle this time. "I know, love. Just learn to control your temper on the big brute yeah?"

I roll my eyes as he winks at me knowingly. I'm not sure what that means so I ignore it for the time being.

Dinner was delicious. I wish my mom could have tasted the food. It all seems exotic yet somewhat familiar. Having my stomach full, I decide to look around the vicinity and walk for a bit. Curiosity gets the better of me so I leave our apartment to find some place to explore except there was nowhere to go to. The elevator only has the training grounds and the district floors.

"You aren't trying to find an escape route are you, 'coz you'll just end up as a corpse before you are even able to step out of this building."

Finnick appears from behind me with a mischievous grin.

"I'm not stupid, you know." I drawl.

Smirking, he comes towards me and pushes the up button of the elevator. He steps inside and holds the door, waiting for me to come in.

"We don't have all night, love." He says impatiently.

I enter the lift silently as he pushes the last button with the letters RD written on it. I don't ask where we are going, but I assume that it's going to be the top most floor.

As the elevator comes to a halt, the doors finally open and a gust of wind blows into my face. I squint in mild surprise and step out to see the most beautiful garden I have ever laid my eyes on.

"What is this place?" I ask in awe but I really did not wait for an answer.

It's like a paradise. All the flowers are in perfect bloom and despite being night time it is perfectly illuminated. I walk along the yellow pathway and find some set of swings by the far end. I sit on one of them and close my eyes to feel the wind blowing into my face and hair as the crickets make noise and fireflies start to roam around.

Opening my eyes once again, I see the vast land filled with city lights in front of me and that's when I suddenly remember where I am.

"How funny that something so beautiful resides in such an ugly place" I say.

Finnick sits down by the swing beside me and stares at the view of the city in front of us.

"You know what they say. We can't judge a book by its cover."

I silently agree with him. The games are perfect proof that the saying is true. Finnick and Mags are good people yet they probably killed a lot to become Victors. That doesn't make them bad people right?

"In this world, you do what you have to do. It's not wrong to want to survive."

I smirk at his words. "Is it really?"

Finnick smirks back and looks at me. "Can we really correctly distinguish what is right from wrong?"

I don't answer back, mostly because I don't really have an answer to that.

"Aren't I going to be in trouble for being up here?" I suddenly ask.

"You know I wouldn't put you in harm's way Cordelia." He laughs as he starts to swing back and forth.

For someone older than me, he seems more childish than ever.

"The training center building for the tributes always has a roof deck. Not everyone seems to know about it, but I could have sworn it was common knowledge." He shrugs.

I start to swing slowly back and forth as well. "I like it here. It's somehow peaceful."

"The strong wind jams up the signal as well, so no one can spy on us." He winks.

"Too bad they won't hear me bad mouth them." I say and Finnick laughs once again.

"You're one pretty brave woman to speak like that."

I look at the view below and whisper. "That's only what I want everyone to think."

"It's ok to be afraid, Cordi. You're not human if you aren't even the slightest bit scared of this whole thing." He reassures me.

It's my turn to laugh. "Why, do __they__ even regard us as humans with what they're making us do?"

Finnick stops swinging, looking more serious this time.

"I promise you I will do everything I can to get you out alive. You have to promise me that you'll trust me and do your best to win the games."

I sigh as I think of Zale, my best and only friend for the matter. I try my best to push away all the emotions building up on me.

"I trust you, Finnick... but I can't promise to win."

"I knew I'd find you guys here."

A voice comes from behind and we both look back to find Zale coming towards us. He takes a seat on the empty swing on my left and feels the breeze of the cold wind.

"Wow. The wind feels like home, only less saltier." He comments.

We all chuckle at his observation, having thought the same thing.

"How did you know we were here?" I ask.

"Well, aside from the district floors, this is the only floor that works. So I figured that you might have gone here."

"Congratulations on finding the not-so-secret secret hide out!" Finnick exclaims and we all laugh at the 'newly named' floor.

"Aren't the both of you tired yet by the way? You got another long day of training tomorrow." He asks

I groan in response.

"I'm so not ready to have another full day with the Careers again."

"Technically, you are one of them. So you better get used to it." He replies.

"Come on, Cordi. Glimmer's not so bad. Just ignore Cato." Zale says.

"Are you kidding me? The girl couldn't even shoot properly and she has the nerve to call herself a Career. She only knows the logic of sticking people with the pointy end of weapons."

Finnick laughs once again at my statement. "What about this Cato then?"

What about him? "Cato's a jerk. He's so full of himself and acts all high and mighty."

"Don't all Careers think that way?" Zale retorts while giving me a smirk.

"Shut up. I'm not like that and you aren't either." I reply.

"We may not be so 'full of ourselves', but given our backgrounds you can't deny that we take pride in our fighting abilities. __You__ showed off Glimmer with the spear earlier, remember?"

He's not actually wrong, but I don't really want to admit it. I rub my temples in frustration.

"That's a different story. Blondie questioned whether I could do anything at all. I just put her in her place."

Zale laughs as I frown in irritation. "See? Exactly my point."

"Whatever. I still don't like him. If people from back home gave him the attention he wanted, he won't succeed on making me here." I say, crossing my arms in conviction.

He raises an eyebrow. "Is he threatening you or anything? What happened before we found the two of you inside the gym?"

"Nothing. Would you give it a rest? Geez." I roll my eyes, hoping he wouldn't catch on to my little white lie.

Finnick stays silent all the time, although the knowing look on his face is pretty hard to miss.

"Have something you want to share, Mr. Odair?" I drawl.

The man feigns surprise at being called to his attention, stands up and starts stretching his arms upward.

"Oh, nothing! It's just getting late and I'm gonna have to call it a day. The both of you should probably as well."

We all agree and head down to our floor. As we enter the apartment, we all bid good night and walk to our respective sleeping quarters.

"Is there something I need to know with regards to this Cato boy?" Finnick inquires as soon as Zale is out of earshot.

I really don't want to talk about this but I figure that at least Finnick should know so I let out a deep sigh.

"Well, he pointed me with a sword to the throat earlier."

He raises an eyebrow, urging for me to continue.

"...and he says he needs time to figure me out so he'll let me live longer than the others." I say, rolling my eyes once again at how ridiculous that sounds.

I could see the gears on his head working as he stands there silently trying to decipher what I told him. I wait for him to say something but he just beams at me and puts an arm around my shoulder as we begin to resume walking to our rooms.

"Well, tomorrow's going to be another pretty busy day. Just keep up what you're doing and don't change a thing." He says.

Sensing that there's something else he isn't saying, I squint my eyes and give him a suspicious look.

"That's it? You just tell me to act like I always do, and what, I should just let him taunt me?"

"Trust me, I've seen a lot of things you don't see ever since we met. Stop questioning, and just do what you think you ought to do. I'm not telling you to let him think he could taunt you. I'm saying you should just continue doing what you usually do. That's our strategy. When most tributes tend to play a role of something they are not, you will just have to play the role of being yourself."

I massage the back of my neck. "Quite confusing. But whatever, fine."

We stop by the entrance to my room and Finnick pats me gently on the head. "You'll do well, love. Stop worrying and be brave."

I scoff, yet smile back gently in return. "Easy for you to say. Your time in the arena is over."

He gives me a pained smile as I open the door.

"Oh it will never be over. Once you enter, there's no exit. Go to sleep, you need to regenerate your strength for tomorrow." He says and bids one last good night.

So many thoughts make me feel exhausted. I just want to leave everything behind and stop worrying, but how could I?

I wake up the next day earlier than usual, finding that my closet has already been prepared with a new set of training clothes for the day.

 _ _That was fast__ , I think to myself.

Today's training is more on obstacle circuits and hand to hand combats. We are currently instructed to take turns with the group of combat trainers in sparring. They aren't different from our instructors at the Academy, but new faces somehow bring more of a challenge because of the different fighting styles.

Grabbing a water bottle, I sit by the usual stairs and join Zale, Clove and Marvel who are all also done with their round and currently taking a break as well. Looking around, I notice that more than half really do not have any knowledge in hand combat.

Lora is currently on one of the arena mats, failing to make a decent punch as she stumbles in front of the instructor. On the other side is the boy from Twelve, who judging from his stance hasn't even thought of punching someone a day in his life. I shake my head as I refuse to watch them any longer.

"I feel so bad for them." I whisper to Zale so only he can hear.

He follows my line of sight and watches the tributes train for a few seconds.

"There's nothing we could have really done." He whispers back with a pained voice of understanding.

I don't say anything else and continue to look around and watch the other tributes. The guy named Thresh sure is big, but he lacks reflex and skill. His strength is quite enough though to match Cato's. Now that he's received a bit of training, I bet he would be something we need to be more extra careful with.

Glimmer, whose long blonde hair is now up in a perfect pony tail, is actually doing a decent job in sparring. I guess Career kids really know how to fight, no matter how idiots and narcissistic some of them are.

My eyes finally land to the mat where Cato is. He and his trainer are currently having a heated spar. Although the staff seems more physically trained than Cato, it seems that it's an even match between the two.

I watch as Cato dodges a left hook and returns an upper smoothly. His face looks so determined and feral, like someone ready to kill.

"He's quite skilled." I unconsciously blurt out.

"He's at the top of his class. Overall top pick for the games as well. At the Academy, he was one of the best. No one could beat him at a spar except for our top instructors." Clove says, having noticed who I am referring to.

"That explains his ego reaching the roof." I scoff.

She smirks as she takes another sip from her own water bottle. "A lot of people back home have their eyes on him. Leaders, instructors, fellow students... girls..."

I definitely roll my eyes at her statement. No wonder he's so confident about himself.

"So you got an eye out for him too?" Marvel teases the raven haired girl.

"Do you want me to stick a knife to your neck? Gross. He may attract girls like __blondie__ over there, but trust me he's definitely not someone I'd be interested with."

I snicker at her use of Glimmer's 'nickname'. I glance back at Cato, observing his way of combat as he swiftly dodges another swing to his right. I hate to admit that he may actually seem a bit good looking, if it weren't for the murderous and cold blooded killer vibes he's been emitting.

"Plus, he's never really given any girl some serious attention. He has always been only focused on training and he's way too brutal and scary for just anyone to actually approach him." Clove adds.

I silently agree on that last part. Clove, Marvel and Glimmer have that eagerness and bloodlust in their eyes... but Cato's a different story. They're not only in his eyes, they are etched to his soul.

Combat training has soon finally come to an end. After lunch break, the Head Trainer introduces us to our second activity for the day— obstacle training. Being on the boats all our lives, we people from District 4 have pretty good balance and placement even when standing on moving objects.

I successfully land on the last pillar with ease. No hits.

Smiling to myself, I go back to the corner where the other Careers are while Zale takes his turn on the course.

"Not bad, Four." Marvel muses.

"It's nothing, really. We have been so used to untamed waters that I guess living by the ocean pays off." I shrug.

Just then, we hear a commotion from behind. It's Cato, and he's definitely not in a good mood.

"You took my knife! Return it now if you don't want me to beat you to a bloody pulp right here!" He swears as he holds up the boy from Six by the collar.

"Dude, I did not take your knife!" He says as he tries to push Cato out of his grasp.

No one dares to get in the middle of the commotion, not even the boy's district partner. Everyone watches silently as Cato begins to see red completely and lose it as a couple of Peacekeepers from afar start to approach them.

Before I could think of anything logical, I start to approach the two tributes as well.

"Cordi! What do you think you're doing?!" Zale hisses.

I ignore his warning and walk as calmly as I could to Cato and the boy. He doesn't notice me at first so I cross my arms in front of them and stand as close as I am able to.

"Hey, genius. I know you love to kill people and all, but we're not at the arena yet." I tell him coolly.

"Stay away from this, Cordelia." He says through gritted teeth. I can see the veins on his forehead popping out angrily.

His use of my name catches me momentarily in surprise, although I'm quick enough to not let it show on my face. I step closer a bit to his side and whisper so only he could hear.

"Unless you want the other tributes to see your temper as a weakness, you might want to control it now before the Peacekeepers decide to give you a time out." I advise as I nudge my head to the direction of the men in white armor currently approaching us.

He seems to realize where I'm getting at, having noticed everyone staring at us.

With a loud grunt, he reluctantly releases the boy who has turned a bit white from the lack of air and pushes him away.

"You're the first one I'm coming for in the arena. Mark my words." He threatens as he points a finger at him.

The boy couldn't hide his fear and looks like he's about to pee in his pants. Now he has a target on his back from the most brutal tribute in the arena. Poor kid.

Just when I'm about to feel pity for the boy from Six, I look in front of me to face Cato, staring at me with a lot of venom in his eyes. He's the one to come closer this time and I don't move an inch to where I'm standing. I could feel all eyes at the gym are still definitely on us.

"You're lucky you are part of the pack or else you'd be the second tribute I'd be coming for." His cold voice whispering in my ear.

He then proceeds to get back to the others, bumping my shoulder on the way. Trying to not look like I am fazed, I follow him quietly from behind.

"Do you really have a death wish?! Why did you have to butt in?" Zale continues to hiss in my ear.

I don't know why either, so I just stay silent and roll my eyes.

I try to steer clear of attention for the rest of the day so I stick to the basic stations which require little interaction with anyone. Although I go with the group most of the time, I don't speak to anyone that much other than Zale.

Zale doesn't open up the topic even until during dinner at the apartment. I'm glad I am saved from any possible scolding or comments from Finnick or Mags, but I'm pretty much sure he would give me an earful when he gets the chance.

After changing into something more comfortable to wear, I sneak out of the apartment and go up to the roof deck. I feel like I'm in need of fresh air and some alone time. Not that my room doesn't give me privacy but the garden and the night view up here somehow gives me a bit more peace.

The wind continues to blow in my face. How I wish that it smells like the familiar salty breeze we use to inhale back home. As I move the swing back and forth, I try to imagine the feeling of the waves gently rocking our boat whenever we are out at sea. I suddenly remember the morning of the Reaping. Who would have known that it was possibly going to be our last time setting foot at the boats?

Sudden footsteps from behind me indicate that someone is approaching. I could not make out how heavy they are because of the wind whistling. From the corner of my eye however, I could see Zale's shadow forming from the dimly lit area we are in. I sigh as I get ready for him to lecture me about my display at the gym earlier.

"I know it was pretty stupid to stop Cato earlier and I know you were worried. I'm sorry okay?" I say, my back facing him.

I know I'd rather tell him to just give it a rest and stop worrying about me, but I'm really tired to argue about anything more today.

"That was indeed pretty stupid and __you're__ the one who should be worried __I'd__ beat you to a pulp instead of that kid for interrupting me."

That voice definitely wasn't Zale. I swiftly turn my head around and see the last person I expect to be with alone here at the most isolated area of the building.

Cato has his arms crossed, smirking while resting his side by the lamp post that serves as the only light in this section of the roof. It doesn't really help that he just heard me talking about him, so I just casually face the front once again and continue to look at the view of the city below, trying my best to look unsurprised by his unexpected appearance.

Wishing he would go away seems too good to be true, since he finally decides to take a seat on the empty swing beside me.

He doesn't seem to be in 'beast mode' this time. In fact, he seems unusually calm, which is a bit surprising for anyone to see I bet. For some reason, even though my mind tells me to get up and run I just remain seated on my swing.

"Why are you here?" I snap.

"Shouldn't I be asking you that question?" He mocks.

"I was here first, so you don't get to ask the questions." I reply.

He doesn't say anything else and the silence is making me feel uneasy.

"So you just come up here to sit there and admire the view?" I drawl.

"No. I came up here to beat you up." He deadpans.

Normally I would feel tense about that answer, but his voice doesn't seem laced with any hint of bloodlust this time.

"Asshole." I say unthinkably.

He laughs at my retort which surprises me a bit. For once, he seems a little bit more human.

A moment of silence passes again between the two of us. I try to decipher what could he possibly be thinking, and how come I'm somehow seeing a different side of this person everyone makes out to be scary, brutal and heartless.

That moment passes by quickly, however, as his relaxed face contorts to anger in an instant.

"You think you're that brave, huh?" He glowers.

I cautiously grip the ropes holding my swing up, getting ready to defend myself in case he decides to really beat me up right here.

Suddenly looking conflicted, he huffs and stands up to leave without saying anything else.

That was pretty confusing, even for me. As I stare at the now empty swing beside me, I silently ponder on how to deal with a person as dangerous and complicated as Cato.


	7. Chapter 7

_****Author's Note:****_

 _ ** **Hey, everyone! Life has sucked for me lately so it took me a while to update. I had to get some inspiration once again to finish the chapter and I'm just glad I was able to. Please do leave a review, I might be able to update the next quickly. ;) Enjoy!****_

* * *

 ** **Chapter 7****

"Tell you what, the one who gets the lowest score will have to give a part of their share of food in the arena." Marvel suggests while we are waiting outside a part of the gym's huge metal door.

Today is the evaluation day for us tributes. We get to show our skills to the game makers and they rate us depending on how much of a threat we are to others basically. Finnick keeps on reminding me all morning that today is the chance to show skills I haven't shown to anyone during the last few days. I've been thinking carefully what to perform ever since.

"You better remember that when you lose, Marvel." Clove responds.

As usual, we are a bit early than most of the other tributes. Zale and I come down to see the rest of our group already here in the waiting area. Glimmer has been brushing her hair with her hands as usual, ignoring the other two bickering about their supposed 'bet'.

I hesitantly glance over Cato, who seems to be ignoring everyone and silently waiting for the performances to start. I sit over in front of him with Zale beside me. For a moment I wonder once again about our odd encounter last night. I don't dare to look behind me, yet I'm pretty sure I feel his eyes boring into the back of my head.

"So... Have you decided on what to show the game makers?" Zale suddenly asks, interrupting my thoughts on the boy from behind whom I still feel looking at me, which makes me shift a bit uncomfortably. I hope Zale doesn't notice.

"Hmm... Let's see." I hum and start to look around as the room starts to pile up with the other tributes. Most— scratch that— __all__ of them seem nervous. Not that I could blame them. I'm pretty nervous myself as well, I just wouldn't show it.

I suspect that the Careers will show their skills on their best weapons. They're quite predictable, if I must say. The other tributes will probably do the same except for those who have no combat skills at all. They'll probably be showing who-knows-what to impress the game makers. With all these considering, I let out a small smile showing a tiny hint of confidence.

"I think I know just the thing. You?" I tell Zale.

Recognizing the look I have on my face, he just smiles back and shrugs.

"Maybe."

I roll my eyes and elbow him on the side.

"Show off."

Chuckling for a bit, he turns to the others behind us and starts to join the bickering.

"Hey, Marvel. Count me in on that challenge. I could use the extra food."

I snicker at the other two as the now-three of them continue to bicker. The other tributes near us could hear the conversation, some giving us disgusted looks and most are too afraid to even look at our direction at all.

"Seems you aren't used to that kind of attention." The boy from behind me finally speaks.

I shift my gaze to him for a second, seeing him staring back darkly at the tributes giving us a dirty look. Once they see Cato looking at them, they immediately cower in fear and start to mind their own business.

I merely shrug at him in response.

"I get different kinds of attention, all of which I don't like."

He doesn't say anything for a moment and just as I am about to turn back to facing front he finally responds.

"Too bad you caught mine."

I really don't get this guy. He's rude, cold, brutal, heartless... every inch of a violent thing I could think of. Although despite those characteristics, I could see a crack under it and little by little I get to see glimpses of something raw. Too irritated with my thoughts for making me think of him more than necessary, I ignore his last comment and continue to face front, focusing on today's task with the game makers.

He doesn't bother me anymore after that. Zale and the others continue to talk among themselves, unaware of our little exchange which I think is a good thing.

Not long after, the speaker announces the start of today's agenda and asks us all to get ready as they start to call Glimmer in for the evaluation.

I stare in front at relatively nothing, not making any expression that would give away me being nervous at all. I could tell everyone has gotten serious and some even more nervous since the room has suddenly become quiet.

After what seems like forever, Glimmer finally emerges from the large metal door just as the speaker calls for Marvel to go next.

"I'll see you guys at the cafeteria." She says as she passes by our seats onto the exit.

We all wait patiently as they call us one by one. Cato walks confidently, ignoring everyone as if we are all beneath him as he enters the gym. After a few minutes, he comes out and district three is now being called. As he passes by the isle where I remain sitting, I notice him taking a quick glance the moment he passes by me.

I could barely make out the unidentifiable smirk forming on his lips as we momentarily make eye contact before he goes back to wearing that expressionless mask he has on every time he's not seething in rage over something. What was that all about? I could not even decipher if it is meant to mock or taunt me.

I could feel Zale's hands as I look at them over my own fists that are now balled up tightly and resting on my lap.

"Hey, you'll do good." Zale reassures me, thinking that I'm all worked up over the evaluation.

I smile back at him warmly and feel my shoulders relax. I know that I could always count on him.

The voice from the speaker calls out my name next and I give Zale's hand a light squeeze before I stand up and walk towards the giant metal door waiting. I feel several pairs of eyes on me as I walk as calm and as confident as I could towards the entrance. I may be used to everyone staring at me and giving me all kinds of looks even back home, but I don't think I'll ever learn to not hate the feeling.

The gym feels so big and deserted the moment I enter inside. I walk slowly to the front, hearing the door behind me closing. By the clearing in the middle, there's a huge elevated platform where a bunch of men in extravagant coats and suits are mingling with one another. Game makers.

The tall one with the funny curled shaped beard takes notice of my presence and gives me a slight nod, urging for me to begin.

"I would like to request for a sparring partner, please." I say as polite as I can muster.

The man raises both eyebrows in curiosity, after a while speaking through the piece on his ear and muttering something quietly.

Not long after, a woman emerges to the clearing wearing a trainer's uniform. She's quite big and buff and judging from her overall physique, she is more than qualified to take me on. I guess the curly beard man— or shall I say, __Head Game Maker__ — wants to put on a good show for everyone.

I did not expect anything less anyway.

Keeping the polite demeanor, I walk over to the trainer and ask her to pick a weapon of her choice. As if to mock me, she chooses a pair of knives among the extensive display of deadly arms.

Taking nothing from the weapon rack, I give a slight nod in return and proceed to stand at the opposite end of the arena mat the staff has laid out for us.

Another trainer acting as the referee signals for us to get ready as I position into a fighting stance, bare hands and myself only as my weapon. I notice the room beginning to go quiet, everyone anticipating the match before them with a weaponless tribute fighting one of their well-trained sparring instructors.

The whistle signals the start of the match. We start to circle around each other slowly and carefully assessing the opponent's first move. I have to be careful not to mess this up and underestimate my enemy, or else I'd not only risk getting a low evaluation score but I'd definitely come out with one nasty bruise or two.

As expected, my opponent makes the first move, charging the knife in swiftly with a hook. My reflexes are fast, but apparently this woman is faster than I anticipated as I dodge her with barely an inch of the blade slicing through my face. Looks like she's testing my moves, judging from the small smirk she gives as I dodge another attack.

With no moment to spare, I grab her right arm as soon as the opportunity offers a good opening. I attempt to twist it but her other free arm manages to attempt to hit me before I am able to. Blocking her attack, I release her as I resume to a fighting stance.

Everything is happening so fast. We exchange swift blows with one another: her with knives in her hand and me with my bare hands. I focus hard as we continue to dodge and block each other's attacks efficiently. Nothing can be heard in the room except for our arms and fists clashing with one another and a couple of grunts and cries of attack.

I land my opponent a kick to the stomach, finally succeeding on catching her momentarily off guard. I use that split-second opening as an opportunity to punch her on the face and knock one knife off of her.

Grabbing the knife from the ground swiftly, I brace myself as the trainer finally recovers with an irritated look on her face. She probably did not expect me to be able to do that. I smirk as she prepares to lunge forward to my direction, my focus not wavering for one bit.

Back at the Academy, my sparring instructor, an old man of foreign tongue taught me a more intense method of combat. He says it has been passed down by his ancestors who travelled to our lands from a far away place. Ever since the Great War of our ancient ancestors started, those like him who were left at our lands had no way of going back, and so they started to live and start a new life here. A few decades later, this land was named Panem and after the first revolution of the New Age the twelve districts are formed.

As a kid, he used to tell me different tales of his land. I find him odd at first, his eyes so small and squinty and his skin of different hue. Yet despite his old age, he is quite strong and skilled like a seasoned warrior. He started to train me and Caspian not long after my brother was picked for the games. During training hours, he would teach me different techniques which he refers to as 'martial arts'. Some of the instructors find it a waste of time, but I find it fascinating.

The fighting method isn't at all different from what the other sparring instructors normally teach at the Academy. In fact, they're almost the same, albeit the old man's method being much more intensive and requiring more time and focus.

Zale doesn't really understand why one needs to study even deeper into combat techniques than what is standardly being taught. I find myself drawn into it however. So like all other kids, he preferred to use all his time and focus on wielding weapons instead.

My opponent directs a high kick at me to which I duck swiftly. I notice her feet getting tired and the footing off as she regains her posture from the missed assault. Quickly, I kick the part of her legs just below her knees hard enough for her to lose a bit of balance and I finally manage to tackle her down.

Knocking the remaining knife off her hand, I twist both her arms and weigh her down on my knees as I place my blade directly to her neck. Just then, the whistle goes off once again.

It's the end of the match.

My muscles start to relax and I release the woman below me, dropping my weapon to the ground. I stand up and offer a hand, her face unreadable yet grabbing my hand for support anyway.

"Good job, tribute. You are a worthy opponent." She tells me before bowing to the Game Makers and taking her leave.

The gentlemen from above the platform begin to clap excitedly. They seem to be enjoying the __show__ just as I planned.

"Bravo! What a magnificent display!" I hear one of them say.

The Head Game Maker looks at me for a while with deep thought and finally starts to speak.

"Why did you not show us your skills with the weapons instead?"

I give him another polite smile and answer calmly.

"I figured everyone will be doing the same strategy. I'm also quite sure you have already seen me use a weapon during our trainings."

Finnick tells me that even though the game makers are not present during our training sessions, they are always presented with a video recap and a full on report for the day. Come to think of it, do they know about me and Cato's little encounter during the first day at the gym? I'm relieved that we didn't get any trouble for it, but it's a bit kind of odd realizing that there are surveillances hidden everywhere.

"Very well." The man says in response. "Thank you, you may go now."

I give them a slight bow before heading towards the exit.

Zale gets ready to enter the gym the moment I step out from the huge metal door. I elbow him slightly as we cross paths, muttering him __'good luck'__ as he returns me a wink before disappearing behind.

"So how did it go, __Miss Siren__?" Marvel teases as I join the others in the Cafeteria. It's a little too early for lunch but since there is no where else to go all of us hang out here while we wait for everyone to finish.

"I wish you would stop calling me that." I reply, sitting beside Clove.

"Aw, come on! The name fits. Aren't I right, Cato?"

Everyone looks to the boy to the other side of Clove, his elbows up on the table with one hand resting on his chin. He directs a glance at me but doesn't say anything, his face expressionless.

Glimmer snorts and finally decides to speak up.

"I didn't know freaks are your type these days, Marvel."

 _ _Freak.__ The very word I used to hear whenever the other kids whisper about my appearance in school back when Zale and I were younger. I got used to the name over time that I learned to become numb from it.

I shoot Glimmer a bored look, as if to tell her that I'm not affected with her insults. I don't really get it why she has it out for me all the time.

"I wonder if you have seen yourself in the mirror lately?" I say.

I hear Clove snicker quietly as the blonde starts to scowl, annoyance clearly on her face.

"Whatever. At least I don't have __that__ kind of what's with those eyes? You don't look like your brother at all." She smirks as she sees the slight surprise I unexpectedly show in my eyes and continues.

"Yeah, that's right. It so happens our mentors are well informed. I have seen your brother while we watched the previous games... Ended up losing his hea—"

"Watch what you're going to say next, Glimmer, or I'll make sure you'll end up losing yours." Zale suddenly appears from behind, having heard the ongoing conversation.

His low and taunting voice made sure that this is an issue not to be taken lightly. Of course he would come to the rescue, most especially that he knows that my brother is a very sensitive topic for me. I wouldn't really admit that reliving the events of my brother's death gets to me, but he knows that I just always put on a brave face in public even without me telling him.

To lighten up the now tense atmosphere, Marvel breaks the silence for us.

"Now, now, Zale. Don't mind her anymore. We all know she can be a bitch at times especially with that mouth of hers. Cordelia, you'll have to excuse my district partner. Everything's good right? Though I won't blame you if you strangle her, just don't kill her yet."

Trying my best to remain unfazed for the past couple of minutes, I manage a smile as calm as I could.

"Of course, I wouldn't want to jeopardize our alliance just because of __that.__ " I say, referring to Glimmer on the last part.

She gives a huff but says no more. I'm glad nobody presses the issue any further since I don't really want to broadcast my family's 'unfortunate tragedy'. Aside from Zale's subtle glances of concern, everyone minds their own business for the rest of the day. Cato seems to stop taunting me, in fact, he hasn't spoken to me ever since this morning.

When the time comes for us to return to our respective floors, I feel a sudden wave of relief. The air has been awkward even though everyone carried on with the usual. For some reason I feel more vulnerable now that the other Careers know an unwanted part of my history. Have they identified it as a weakness?

"They know about Caspian, Finnick." I tell my mentor as I lay down on my bed with both hands and legs sprawled wide in exhaustion.

Finnick, who seems to have noticed that something is bothering me the moment we returned remains silent as he sits by the edge of the bed.

"That stupid blonde Glimmer said that her mentors have informed them of it."

Finnick raises an eyebrow, his lips turning upward in amusement.

"You seem pretty high on the insults." He chuckles.

Sighing deeply, I finally decide to sit up.

"I'm going to die." I say with finality.

"No, you're not. There's nothing sure about anything yet." He counters.

"When it's time for the tables to turn, they'll use Caspian against me and... and..." I falter, both of us knowing what comes next.

"You're stronger than you think Cordelia. You just don't see it most of the time, but you pretty much look fearless and brave. That's why I already got a couple of interested sponsors lined up waiting."

I suddenly look up to Finnick, my expression suddenly showing a bit of hope.

"You do?"

He puts on that annoyingly charming lopsided grin again and puffs his chest proudly.

"Of course! Who do you think I am?" He says and gives me a wink.

I elbow him on the side playfully as a small smile forms on my lips. At least there's some good news to hear with all that's been going on.

"You may not see it, but I've been seriously doing my job finding you the best and as many sponsors as I can, now it's time you do yours and do your best to win." He tells me.

He's right. I've come this far being able to show a strong front. I won't let anyone try to use my brother's death against me.

"You should have seen me during my assessment this morning then. I think I nailed it." I say, feeling proud.

Finnick raises an eyebrow once again. "Oh? Mind sharing what you showed them?"

I smile as I sit more properly this time, positioning myself by the edge of the bed beside him.

"I requested to spar with a trainer."

His brows furrow in mild confusion, waiting for me to elaborate.

"—with only me weaponless."

Surprise and awe are suddenly shown on his face for a moment.

"What was the other one holding?" He asks.

"A pair of knives." I shrug.

He smirks as if he suddenly realizes something. "You trained with old man Ling."

It's now my turn to be surprised.

"You know him?"

"Of course. The Academy isn't big enough to not know people, you know. Besides, he taught me a couple of techniques as well." He admits.

I silently nod at his response. "Ah, yeah. I remember that you still come to teach at the Academy after the Games. You were seldom there, though. I remember seeing you around only once."

He shrugs at my statement and sighs softly as he gives me a tired smile. "Capitol duty calls most of the time."

I remain silent and nod once again. Although I am curious on what kind of 'duty' the Capitol has for him, judging from his expression it is not something he is ready to share with others so openly.

Finnick looks at the fancy black leather watch on his wrist and eventually stands up. "Come on. Dinner's already being served I believe. After that, we'll get to find out what score you guys got from today's recap. Let's see how old man Ling's training paid off shall we?"

"I'm pretty confident all those extra trainings with him were worth it." I smirk as I stand up to follow.

The Capitol hymn suddenly plays and Caesar's voice booms from the television while we are all chatting up at the dinner table, just in time as we finish dinner.

 _ _Good evening, citizens of Panem! We all know everyone is anticipating tonight's news as we will be revealing the scores of our twelve tributes from today's private training with the game makers!__

We all gather around the couches by the living room while Caesar and Claudius carry on with the introductions.

 _ _I heard that we have a couple of strong contenders this year, Caesar.__

 _ _Indeed, Claudius! The citizens have already gone and started placing some bets. I heard rumors that we already have sponsors having their eye on some of our Tributes! Who do you think they are?__

 _ _I guess we'll never know yet, Caesar, but I bet the revealing of these scores will definitely give us some hints to it!__

"You better not lose that stupid bet you made with Clove and Marvel 'coz I'm not sharing with you." I tease Zale while the screen shows Caesar opening up the envelope containing our scores.

"What bet?" Cinna who is sitting at the other end of the couch overhears me.

"My, my. You two aren't even in the arena yet and you're already risking yourselves?" Finnick scolds from beside me.

"Not me. Only this genius over here agreed on betting his share of food in the arena." I explain.

"You __what__?!" Mags' attempt to shriek comes out more like a squeak.

"Ow, ow! Relax! I wouldn't be agreeing to that bet if I wasn't sure I had a chance on winning!" Zale yelps in pain as Mags pinches his ear and pulls it down hard.

Finnick and I snicker at the display. Somehow I feel warmth in my chest seeing how close Zale and Mags have become. I could see how he sees her as a mother figure and he as a son to her. Kinda just like Finnick.

 _ _Glimmer with a score of 8!__

 _ _Marvel with a score of 9!__

Caesar finally announces. The room goes silent as we all watch out for each Tribute's score. As expected, everyone from the Career Pack got a high score. Cato unsurprisingly got a 10 and so does Clove.

I lean forward slightly towards the screen as soon as they call out our district. My face suddenly shows up and a number ten flashes beside it right after Caesar announces my score.

"Well done Cordelia!" Finnick elbows to congratulate me while the others murmur in agreement.

Now it is Zale's turn, and as soon as Caesar announces that he also got a ten he lets out a loud whoop. Griet shrieks in delight, having her two tributes getting one of the top scores while everyone else in the room rejoices as well.

 _ _Looks like District Four is coming in strong this year Claudius! They seem to prove that they might be on par with District Two!__

"See? I told you to relax. I didn't lose, did I?" Zale tells Mags.

The old lady scowls at him, albeit silently agreeing in defeat.

"Technically, you're in a tie with Clove. So you really didn't win alone." I counter.

"Oh, don't be such a kill joy Cordi." He mocks.

I pout my lips in annoyance and stick out my tongue while the others chuckle at our bickering.

Cinna holds up a glass of what they call champagne to signal a toast in congratulations of our high scores. We all grab the glasses laid out in front of us by the servants as we follow suit and celebrate.

Not long after, the others decide to have wine. Since us tributes aren't really allowed with that kind of liquor, we decide to stick with the non-alcoholic cocktails given to us.

Everyone is busy chatting with themselves so I sneak away for a bit to go up the roof deck. It has been my favorite location in this building, obviously because it is the only place that gives me some sense of peace.

"So, a ten, huh?"

I hear someone say after a few minutes of silence to myself.

Immediately knowing who it is, I turn my head around to see Cato standing behind me. Oddly enough, I'm not really surprised that he would show up tonight nor am I as afraid as I used to be being near his presence. In fact, I kind of expected him to show up, not that I would openly admit it even to myself. I'm still cautious, however, knowing that he could not be trusted.

Returning to admire the view from my now favorite swing, I answer back in the most carefree manner.

"Are you scared?"

He chuckles and proceeds to sit down by the same swing next to me as last time.

"You wish, __Four__."

Unsure of what to say or do, I just continue to look at the city lights and he does the same. After what seems like an eternity, he finally decides to say something.

"I watched the games that Glimmer was talking about. I didn't realize he was your brother."

If I look like tensing up upon the mention of Caspian I do my best not to show it.

"If I had known, I would have thought of a different threat the other day other than cutting off your head."

I blink a few times, trying to digest what he says. Is that supposed to be his idea of consolation? I can't help but snort upon thinking of the possibility.

"Something funny?" He growls.

"I didn't know big brutes like you know how to sympathize." I answer, still looking ahead.

Silence meets me, although this time I feel him staring at me from his swing.

"Don't get me wrong,Four. No matter what you're thinking in that little head of yours, I'll make sure __I'm__ going to be the Victor and you'll end up dead just like the rest."

His words clearly sound like the usual threat, but whether he is aware of it or not, there's somehow a bit less malice behind them.

"What are you doing here?"

It's Zale who suddenly appears. I'm not sure who is he directing that question to as he keeps looking back and forth from Cato to me.

"Zale! Why are you up here?" I say, a bit surprised by his presence.

"You suddenly went missing so I figured you'd be here. Finnick and Griet are too drunk to talk to properly and Mags along with the others went off to bed." He answers back, this time not taking his eyes away from Cato.

Cato assumes a stoic expression and gets up to leave but not before facing Zale.

"Zale." He acknowledges by giving a slight nod.

Zale returns the nod, his arms crossed to his chest.

"Cato."

Both boys stare at each other in silence as if they're communicating in their minds. I almost already believe that theory, for the silence is starting to become awkward but only for me and not for them.

After a few seconds Cato starts to leave, slightly brushing his shoulder into Zale's as he heads for the elevator. The gesture is very subtle that I almost missed it if not for my keen observance.

"Did he do anything to you?" Zale asks as soon as Cato is out of sight. I can hear the worry in his voice, just like he has always been back home every time he thinks someone has been bullying me.

"For the nth time Zale, he hasn't done anything. Why are you so worried about him being near me?" I answer back.

" _ _Why__ aren't __you__?" He retorts.

He's right, though. Why do I seem less and less afraid than I used to? I shrug at him and get up from my swing, walking forward towards the edge of the deck to savor even more the night view before us.

"Relax, Zale. I promise you I'll be extra careful with the people around me." I assure as I look back at him smiling.

He smiles back and joins beside me, ruffling my hair while admiring the view as well.

"Hey! You know I hate it when you do that!" I whine.

He gives off that usual soft chuckle and once again I feel a pang of pain, knowing that this is the last time we will be able to joke around like this. I look back front, not realizing I fall silent as I fight back the tears that are trying to form in my eyes.

I won't cry— not now at least. I have to remain strong or else I'll fall weak in battle. If I cry now, all the barriers I've been building to hold me up strong will collapse like the sand castles that we used to build as they are washed away by the waves.

My eyes successfully remain dry, but Zale, being my best friend still knows that I'm trying to hold it all in. He places a hand on my shoulder and squeezes it gently.

"I'll always be here to protect you, Cordi. No matter what."

"You're an idiot." I reply kiddingly.

Since he's taller than me, I rest my head just below his shoulder while we continue to stare at the scenery in silence. Zale's not only my best friend, but he has also become my brother especially after losing Caspian. We might not share the same parents yet I never treated him as anything less than family. I know that if ever I come out alive out of this ordeal, I would have already lost another brother.

Despite knowing all these, there's still nothing I can do to change it. I know it, he knows it... Everyone knows it.

"Hey." He suddenly says. "I've got to talk to you about something important."

I raise an eyebrow and eye him suspiciously.

"Oh? What is it?"

He doesn't say anything, yet the look on his face tells me that it's a real serious matter. Suddenly feeling scared, I start babbling.

"Please don't. I know you're going to want me to pass some messages to your mom and Merry in case you don't make it, but I refuse to hear them. Besides, there's no guarantee I'm making it out alive yet."

He blinks at me a bit surprised, then suddenly laughs.

"It's getting late. We need to head back and rest up for tomorrow." He says and motions his head for me to follow him.

Not pressing any further, he turns his back immediately leaving me confused. I stare at him from behind as he walks away when a sudden strong breeze blows towards my direction. Shivering from the cold, I scurry along to catch up to him as we walk together towards the elevator.


End file.
